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Following is a question by the Hon Albert Chan and a written reply by the Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands, Mr Michael Suen, in the Legislative Council today (April 18):
Question:
Recently, I have received complaints from quite a number of members of the public about the maintenance problems in flats newly allocated to them by the Housing Department. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of complaints received in each of the past three years concerning the maintenance problems in newly-occupied public rental housing ("PRH") flats, broken down by the types of maintenance problems involved; and
(b) whether it will consider establishing an acceptance system whereby the quality of PRH flats will be checked and verified by professionals, and such flats will be rented out only when their quality has attained the level of satisfaction; if so, of the details of the system; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
Madam President,
For both newly constructed PRH flats and refurbished PRH flats, the Housing Department (HD) has put in place a stringent monitoring and acceptance mechanism implemented by professionals and experienced site supervisory staff to ensure that the flats are of a satisfactory quality before they are let.
My reply to the two-part question is as follows:
(a) Based on the HD's records, the number of complaints concerning maintenance of newly-occupied flats over the past three years and a breakdown of the repair items involved are set out in the Annex. Most of these cases involved minor repair items. The tenants were satisfied after simple rectification works were carried out.
(b) All construction works of new public housing flats are closely monitored by professionally qualified and experienced contract managers of HD and their project teams. Upon completion of construction, the site supervisory staff will conduct acceptance inspection according to a series of elaborate procedures. The contract managers will then verify the reports and undertake further site inspections to ensure that the buildings and flats are of a satisfactory quality before the flats are let. Recently, the HD launched an "Intake Ambassador" scheme to provide client-oriented and efficient repair services for tenants of newly built PRH flats during the intake period.
As regards refurbishment of existing flats, the contractors engaged are "Quality Maintenance Contractors" selected by the HD. For all repair items for which the owner is responsible, such as concrete spalling, water seepage and drainage, the HD will ensure that they are properly rectified. The maintenance teams of the HD, comprising professionals and experienced site supervisory staff, will perform strict monitoring during the works periods. Upon completion of works, they will carry out inspection to ensure that the repair and refurbishment are of a satisfactory quality. Moreover, tenants may also choose to apply to the HD for the "refurbishment allowance" and arrange on their own some simple repair and refurbishment works such as wall redecoration and repairs of in-flat tiles so as to advance the dates of intake.
After tenants have moved in their flats, the HD will still respond promptly to tenants' requests and carry out repairs for which the owner is responsible, to ensure that the flats are in good condition. In 2006, the HD launched the "Total Maintenance Scheme" to proactively inspect more than 600 000 PRH flats in the territory by phases, with a view to identifying maintenance problems to further improve the living environment of public housing estates.
Ends/Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Issued at HKT 11:38
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