Tribunal, Ombudsman, or Complaint: Which Route Handles What

1. Your landlord’s own formal complaints procedure

This is generally the first and simplest route to try: check whether your landlord or managing agent has a formal complaints procedure. Councils, housing associations and many larger managing agents publish one, often with more than one internal stage, though the process and number of stages vary - a smaller private landlord or agent may not have a formal procedure at all. Where one exists, it’s usually the fastest way to get a direct response to specific questions, and it costs nothing to use. If your landlord is one of the larger housing associations or managing agents, our landlord contact directory has their official Section 20 and complaints pages. See our guide on writing an effective letter for how to frame your questions clearly.

2. The Housing Ombudsman

The Housing Ombudsman can generally consider complaints about how a landlord or managing agent has handled a housing management matter - including how a service charge issue was communicated or dealt with - provided that landlord or agent is a member of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme and the complaint and your relationship with them fall within the Scheme. This includes most social landlords: local authorities, housing associations, and other registered social landlords. Many private freeholders and privately appointed managing agents are not members, so it’s worth checking membership before relying on this route rather than assuming it does or doesn’t apply based on landlord type alone.

It’s also important to understand what the Ombudsman does and doesn’t do: it can look at whether your complaint was handled fairly and reasonably, but it does not assess the level of a service charge itself, or decide whether a specific charge is reasonable or payable - that’s the tribunal’s role, described below. If your landlord or agent is a Scheme member, and your issue is really about how your questions or complaint were handled rather than the charge itself, the Ombudsman may be the more relevant route.

3. The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber)

The First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) is the body that can actually determine whether a service charge is payable, or would be payable if demanded - including by whom, to whom, in what amount, on what date and in what manner - under section 27A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. This is also where a landlord would apply for dispensation from the consultation requirements (see our dispensation applications guide). Unlike the Ombudsman, the Tribunal can rule on the substance of the charge itself, not just how a complaint about it was handled.

Choosing between them isn’t something this guide decides for you

These three routes exist for genuinely different purposes, and which one (if any) is right for your situation depends on your specific facts, your landlord type, and what outcome you’re actually looking for. This guide, and a Defence Pack, can help you understand what each route generally involves - but the decision of whether and how to use any of them is yours, ideally informed by your own professional advice if the amounts involved are significant.