I own and live in the ground floor flat of a converted property in England. The flat above is owned by a housing association and occupied by one of their tenants.
For over a year, I have experienced severe noise from the upstairs flat, including constant stomping, banging, furniture being dragged, doors being slammed, loud television and music, shouting and disturbances during the early hours.
The upstairs tenant appears to have removed the fitted carpets and now has hard flooring. The tenancy agreement states that the rooms should be carpeted apart from the kitchen and bathroom. Because this is a converted property with very poor sound insulation, I can hear almost every footstep and impact inside my home.
I first reported the noise and flooring concerns last year. I repeatedly submitted requests through the landlord’s website and asked for telephone calls, emails or any named point of contact. Nobody responded properly and no housing officer or leasehold officer contacted me.
I also made a formal complaint before police became involved, but the only communication I received was from the complaints team. Nobody took proactive steps to inspect the flooring, investigate the noise transfer or protect me from the situation.
The behaviour later escalated into verbal threats and intimidation. I eventually contacted the police and had to leave my home because I did not feel safe. It was only after police involvement and outside pressure that the housing association began communicating with me.
The tenant has now reportedly received several warnings, but the noise and behaviour have continued. I have also reported further issues affecting the communal area and access to my property, and verbal threats and harassment.
A multi agency review has since taken place. One of the agreed actions was for the housing association to visit the property, consider ways to reduce noise transfer and take proportionate tenancy action. However, I am still receiving very little information about what is being investigated, whether the flooring has been inspected and when any action will actually happen.
The situation has seriously affected my sleep, mental health, physical health, work and ability to feel safe at home. I have sought help from my GP and have also contacted the Housing Ombudsman.
I understand that there are two connected issues here:
- The apparent breach of the tenancy condition requiring fitted carpets
- The ongoing noise nuisance, intimidation and antisocial behaviour
Has anyone dealt with a similar situation involving a housing association tenant living above a leaseholder?
Would it be worth instructing a solicitor, and what type of solicitor should I look for?
Could legal action require the housing association to inspect the flooring and enforce the tenancy condition?
Could the housing association be held responsible for failing to investigate or act for such a long period?
I would really appreciate advice from anyone with experience of housing law, leasehold disputes, noise nuisance or housing association complaints.