Hamish Isard said the local authority is in breach of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 which “requires that the house is wind and water tight and in all other respects reasonably fit for human habitation”.

The legal pleading, which has been seen by Scottish Housing News, claims that the home at Thornton Place in Forfar hasn’t been fit for human habitation since Mr Isard and his partner Susan Anand moved into the property in 2015.

According to the filing, Mr Isard and Ms Anand were required to clean and decorate the property in order to make it habitable and noticed that there was damp on the exterior walls of the bedroom. 

Around October 2015, the tenants suffered a very large and visible roof leak. While extensive repair work was carried out by the council, the report claimed the dampness problem was not resolved and became worse.

The report added: “Following the roof repairs in October 2015 the dampness was still visible on the exterior walls of the bedroom, with thick black fungi becoming visible. The dampness continued to spread through the winter of 2015. The Pursuer contacted the Defender on a number of occasions in respect of this dampness.

“Representatives from the Defender have attended the property and carried out a number of checks with damp meters and confirmed that the exterior walls required to be stripped back to the bricks to treat the dampness.”

Mr Isard claims that he then became ill and that the council is liable for his deteriorating condition since then.

The filing claims: “In or around late December 2016, the Pursuer started to feel unwell due to the dampness. He had a tight chest and he was feeling wheezy. The Pursuer attended his GP and was given a Salbutamol inhaler.”

It added: “The Pursuer was formally diagnosed with asthma in November 2018 and he was admitted to Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, with an infective exacerbation of uncontrollable asthma found to be secondary to influenza A infection. The pursuer has sustained loss, injury and damage as a result of the defenders’ breach of contract et separatim fault. The pursuer suffered from material distress and inconvenience.”

An expert witness report commissioned by Isard’s lawyers and undertaken by Innes Aitken, a chartered building surveyor, said that the house was “not habitable” and that the “mould growth is extensive and serious”.

The report went on to say that the mould was caused by condensation, not rising or penetrating dampness.

It noted the following areas of significant mould/dampness:

• Widespread heavy mould to plasterboard wall linings, plasterboard ceiling, timber skirtings, ceramic wall tiling, metal and PVC-U plumbing pipework, and laminate flooring to the bathroom.
• Heavy mould growth along the skirtings and bottom of the plasterboard wall linings to the left hand wall and rear wall of the bedroom.
• Heavy mould growth along the rear wall and rear part of the right hand wall (internal separating wall) to the living room, as well as heavy mould growth to the laminate flooring.

Stephen Forsyth, civil litigation partner at MML Law Dundee, who is representing Mr Isard told Scottish Housing News: “As this is an ongoing case, I cannot comment on specifics, however, I think the photos speak for themselves. Tenants often simply put up with mould in their property, however, it can have a serious and long-standing impact, even fatal.

“I will continue to pursue this matter vigorously and would encourage anyone with mould in their property to contact their landlord to resolve matters, failing which, their solicitor. Landlords and the local authority have standards prescribed by law that they must maintain their properties to. Mould is not an exception.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scotland’s social rented homes have improved over a number of years to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard, with more tenants living in warm, safe and dry homes.

“All social landlords, including local authorities, are already required to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard which requires properties to be free from damp, have adequate ventilation and be suitably insulated and they are required to ensure any requests for repairs are carried out in a timely fashion. Compliance is monitored by the Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR).

“SHR and Scotland’s leading housing organisations have published guidance on how the social sector can respond to damp and mould issues in a timely and proactive manner in order to improve outcomes for tenants. If landlords fail to comply, tenants can escalate complaints to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.”

An Angus Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of these complaints and will not make any further comment at this time.”