Hemel Hempstead residents 'fed up' paying for work that is 'not being done'

Residents in Hemel Hempstead have criticised their landlord, claiming they are not carrying out the work they are paid to do.

Richard Harper, 69, one of the residents in Grove Hill West, is fed up for paying extra for things he says are being carried out by his landlord, Clarion Housing.

He said he now has a community petition with over 200 signatures on it from Grove Hill West.

Richard has been asked by the other residents to act as the spokesperson for them. He said: "We are paying an extra amount on our rent and they are not doing the job, they are not doing the repairs, or when they do, they are not done properly - it is a big mess.

"I have been to the London office but no one was available to speak with me.

"I sent the petitions to both Clare Miller and David Avery at Clarion Housing, by registered letter which I received conformation the next day Clare Miller to say that she had passed our complaint onto there residents complaint solutions team for investigation.

"Sir Mike Penning has sent me a reply today to say he will be looking into this, he is going to contact the chief executive of Clarion.

"All we want is for the work that we are paying for to be done - it is neglect on their behalf.

"The residents in total pay £22,000 for ground maintenance, in the last 9 months we have gone seven months without seeing anyone out there doing maintenance, yet we are still paying for it.

"We see no gardeners, no tree people or hedge people, nothing is done by them.

"Clarion Housing are believed to have up to five sites in Hemel Hempstead, who we understand are suffering the same as the Grove Hill West residents, but may feel they can not speak out.

"We are fed up, we are not asking for anything for free, or anything extra, just what we are paying for."

A Clarion spokesperson said: “We are aware of a number of queries relating to service charges at Grove Hill West and have been working with residents to resolve these.

"Following a survey of residents, we have organised a number of socially distanced meetings and estate inspections to resolve issues raised and continue to work closely with our contractors to schedule grounds maintenance and repairs works requested by residents as part of this process.

"We review the invoices provided by our contractors to ensure that all services have been received and are committed to working with our residents to ensure that the correct quality of service is delivered.”