Accusations of fraud levelled against maintenance firm Keepmoat have been scotched by an independent report, after a subsidiary of Circle Housing was overcharged for repairs by more than £170,000.
Savills was commissioned by Circle Housing Merton Priory and Keepmoat to conduct an investigation after fraud allegations made by an anonymous whistleblower, who claimed to be a former CHMP employee, were published in the local press.
The review concluded that Keepmoat had overcharged the association by £173,650, but no evidence of fraud, or of residents being overcharged, was found. The majority of overpayments were down to duplication of charges for scaffolding. Keepmoat has now fully reimbursed CHMP.
A CHMP report outlining the Savills findings said pricing discrepancies were due to Keepmoat’s over-reliance on sub-contractors, staff shortages at CHMP, the complexity of the rates schedule and insufficient post-repair inspections. It said all issues had now been fully addressed.
CHMP’s parent company Circle Housing is currently non-compliant with the Homes and Communities Agency’s Governance and Financial Viability Standard. The 65,000-home group had its governance rating downgraded in April for failing to delivery a satisfactory repair service, through contractor Kier, to tenants of its Circle 33 and Old Ford subsidiaries. It retained the top ‘V1’ rating for financial viability.