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Cambridge City Council complaints, compensation and disrepair claims

Your options if Cambridge City Council hasn’t fixed a repair: claiming compensation, complaining, and what the Housing Ombudsman has found.

By Ben Miller, housing disrepair specialistChecked 7 October 2026 · How we checkRepairs and phone numbers: Cambridge City Council repairs

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LandlordCambridge City Council

Has Cambridge City Council been told about the repair?

Yes, reported and still not fixedCheck if you can claim No, reporting it for the first timeGet Cambridge’s repair contacts

Free to check · About 2 minutes

You can complain to Cambridge City Council, then the Housing Ombudsman, yourself for free.

Complaint or claim?

Your options if Cambridge City Council hasn’t fixed it

Claim compensation

Make a disrepair claim

A law firm on our panel takes it up with Cambridge for you. It asks for the repairs to be done and claims compensation, usually worked out as a share of the rent you paid while the problem wasn’t fixed.

Start your claim Free to check, and we don’t charge you. If a solicitor takes your claim on, they work on a no win, no fee basis and must explain their fee in writing before you agree to anything. See fees

Complain

Complain to the council

This can get the council to look at the repair again. If you’re still unhappy, the Housing Ombudsman can order the council to put things right.

How to complain

You can do both: a complaint can carry on while a law firm makes your claim.

Compensation

How disrepair compensation is worked out

Courts usually award a share of the rent you paid while the problem wasn’t fixed. Three things decide how much. Cambridge’s own target for a routine repair is 20 working days, so a repair left longer than that is already late by its own standard.

  1. 01

    How long

    From when your landlord knew about it to when it was fixed, or today.

  2. 02

    How much of your home

    One room, or the whole home.

  3. 03

    How badly

    How much it affected your daily life and your belongings.

Making a claim

Claiming against Cambridge City Council

  1. 01You tell us what’s wrong and when you reported it. About 2 minutes.
  2. 02We introduce you to a law firm on our panel, with your permission.
  3. 03They write to Cambridge City Council asking for the repairs and compensation. Under the court rules for housing conditions claims, the council should reply within 20 working days.
  4. 04If your claim succeeds, the work is done and compensation is paid to you.

Free to check, and we don’t charge you. If a solicitor takes your claim on, they work on a no win, no fee basis and must explain their fee in writing before you agree to anything. See fees

How to complain

Complaining to Cambridge City Council

Cambridge City Council has to follow the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code.

  1. Stage 1

    Complain to the council

    Passed to the right service manager, with a reply aimed for within 10 working days.

  2. Stage 2

    Ask for a review

    If you’re still unhappy, a senior manager reviews your complaint.

  3. Then

    Housing Ombudsman

    Independent. It can order the council to put things right.

From cambridge.gov.uk, checked 7 October 2026.

Complained and still waiting? You can start a claim while your complaint is going on.

Start your claim

Cambridge’s record

What the regulator and Ombudsman found

Regulator gradeC2

Oct 2025: The regulator found some weaknesses, mainly that fewer than half of homes had an internal stock condition survey in the last five years, along with overdue fire safety actions and gaps in safety data.

Happy with complaints28%

of Cambridge tenants were satisfied with how complaints were handled in 2024/25.

Ombudsman78%

of the Ombudsman’s findings about Cambridge in 2024/25 were maladministration.

Sources: Regulator of Social Housing judgement, 15 October 2025; Cambridge tenant satisfaction measures 2024/25; Housing Ombudsman landlord performance data 2024/25.

Questions

Cambridge City Council complaints and claims: questions

How do I complain to Cambridge City Council about repairs?

Online: cambridge.octavia-govmetric.com. By phone: 01223 457000. Say what the problem is, when you reported it, and what you want done.

How long does Cambridge City Council have to reply to a complaint?

Stage 1: passed to the right service manager, with a reply aimed for within 10 working days. Stage 2: if you’re still unhappy, a senior manager reviews your complaint.

Can I claim compensation from Cambridge City Council for damp and mould?

You could, if you reported it and the council didn’t fix it in a reasonable time. A law firm on our panel can take it up with Cambridge for you.

Start your claim
Has the Housing Ombudsman found Cambridge City Council at fault?

In 2024/25 the Ombudsman found maladministration in 78% of its findings about Cambridge.

Why use Report Repair?

A law firm on our panel takes your claim up with Cambridge City Council: it asks for the repairs to be done and claims compensation for you, so you don’t have to deal with the council on your own. It’s free to check, and if your claim succeeds the law firm’s fee comes out of your compensation.

See fees

Not Cambridge?

Other landlords in the South of England

All landlords in the South of England

Still waiting for Cambridge City Council to fix it?

About 2 minutes. No documents. Free to check.

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