How Do I Complain About My Council or Housing Association in Wales?

Who this guide is for

People in Wales who rent from a council or a housing association and want to complain about how the landlord has dealt with their home or tenancy: for example repairs, damp, or how it handled a complaint. It explains the landlord's complaints process and when the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales can look at your complaint.

What this guide does not cover

• England, Scotland or Northern Ireland: see the England guide, the Scotland guide or the Northern Ireland guide. The Housing Ombudsman is for England only and does not cover Wales.
• Private landlords and letting agents: this guide does not cover complaints about them. Ask Shelter Cymru or Citizens Advice.
• Decisions you can appeal or take to court: the Ombudsman normally cannot look at a complaint where you have a legal right of appeal or can go to court, unless it would be unreasonable to expect you to. This guide does not cover those routes: ask Shelter Cymru.
• Being asked to leave your home: see our eviction guide.
• The repair rules themselves (what must be fixed, damp and mould): see the repairs, damp and mould guide for Wales.
• Problems with a neighbour: see our neighbour disputes guide.
• Your landlord's own time limits for complaining, and taking your landlord to court: this guide does not cover them. Check your landlord's complaints policy or ask Shelter Cymru.

What the rules depend on

1. Where do you live? Wales: this guide. England, Scotland or Northern Ireland: a different ombudsman, so see that nation's guide.
2. Who is your landlord? A council or a housing association: this guide. A private landlord: this guide does not cover it.
3. Which stage are you at? Not complained yet: complain to your landlord. Complained and unhappy with the reply, or no final reply after about 12 weeks: the Ombudsman.
4. When did it happen, or when did you find out? In the last 12 months: normally in time. Longer ago: contact the Ombudsman's Complaints Assessment Team straight away and explain why.

"How do I complain to my landlord?"

• Speak to your landlord first so it knows about the problem and can try to fix it.
• If you are still unhappy, make a formal complaint. Your landlord's complaints policy sets out how to complain, what to expect, any timescales, and how to appeal if you are not satisfied. You can get it from your landlord or its website.
• Keep a copy of your complaint and of the landlord's replies.

"My landlord is taking too long"

• The Ombudsman thinks 12 weeks is a reasonable time for a final reply. If your landlord is taking longer, you can complain to the Ombudsman.
• If you are not sure how to complain to your landlord, the Ombudsman's Complaints Assessment Team can help.

"How do I complain to the Ombudsman?"

• Phone the Complaints Assessment Team or complain online at ombudsman.wales.
• It checks whether your complaint is something the law lets it look at, whether it happened (or you found out about it) in the last 12 months, and whether you have given your landlord a chance to put things right.
• It looks at whether you were treated unfairly or got a bad service because of a failure by your landlord.
• You can contact the Ombudsman in Welsh and it will reply in Welsh.

Deadlines

• Ombudsman: normally within 12 months of the problem happening or of you finding out about it. This site does not work out a date for Wales.
• Landlord's final reply: the Ombudsman thinks 12 weeks is reasonable.
• Your landlord's own time limits: check its complaints policy. This guide does not cover them.

Traps

• The Housing Ombudsman is for England only. Its complaint rules and timescales do not apply in Wales.
• The Ombudsman's 12 months run from when the problem happened or when you found out about it, not from your landlord's final response.
• Give your landlord the chance to put things right before you go to the Ombudsman.
• The Renters' Rights Act 2025 extends to England and Wales. Its rules on residential landlords, redress schemes and the landlord database cover homes in England. Its Wales chapter (discrimination against people with children or on benefits) came into force on 1 June 2026.