A FROME resident is locked in a complaint battle with Mendip District Council and Aster Group, saying his sash windows have not been replaced with double glazing.
Mike Sanders has lived in Vallis Way with his elderly disabled mother and brother for the past 35 years. He says that Aster, who maintain the property on behalf of Mendip District Council, should have installed double glazed windows.
As a result, he says the family has endured living in damp conditions with draughts, and are unable to open and close the windows in winter due to frozen condensation.
Mike Sanders says that he understands that Aster and the district council have refused the installation of double glazing due to Vallis Way being a ‘conservation area’. However, he says that over the years, around 50% of residents in the street have bought their houses from the council and proceeded to install double glazing, without objection.
Currently, he says, Aster are maintaining the sash windows by repainting and servicing them every six years.
Mike Sanders said, “This isn’t just about us, everyone else in our area is going through this. It seems to me that if you can afford to buy your home from the council, Mendip will let you do what you want. If however you live in social housing, you are forced to live in cold, draughty and energy wasteful houses which Aster have consistently not maintained for 35 years.”
An Aster Group spokesperson said, “Mr Sanders and his family’s concerns are currently being investigated as part of our formal complaints procedure.
“We will be keeping Mr Sanders and his family involved in that process while the investigation into his concerns is ongoing, and we haven’t yet reached a conclusion on the issues raised.
“We work with our customers to ensure we do everything we can to help and where appropriate, we use complaints such as this as an opportunity to put things right and improve our services.”
