Instead of making doors individually for each door frame the contractors opted for a "one size fits all" programme, according to a City Councillor.
He says as a result almost 300 Leeds City Council tenants on Moor Grange estate in Kirkstall found their new front doors had gaps between door and frame.
In some cases residents say burglars could easily get an arm through the gap and break in.
The council has now received a copy of an apology from the main contractor.
Deborah West, who moved into her home in Latchmere Drive in June last year, said: "The gap on mine was about four inches. I did not realise that all the doors had been made to one size when they should have been made to measure.
"They made them to fit the smallest. Where there was a bigger gap they blocked it off with plastic."
The door replacement programme is part of a wider refubishment project being carried out on Moor Grange estate.
The door replacement part of the project cost £295,400 and was carried out by Norfolk Frames
Coun John Illingworth (Lab, Kirkstall) received a complaint from a resident on the estate that the newly-fitted door did not fit and was too small.
"I got the first complaint in June about a door not fitting properly," he said. "There was a gap at the top. I thought it was a one-off, a mistake, but then I got more and more.
"Eventually I was delivering leaflets round the estate, and as I went to each house I realised it was every house. So far it has reached 286. Some of the gaps ar so big they would let a burglar in.
"The contract is quite clear. It says each door must be made-to-measure, but they clearly estimated the size then made them all one size, then bodged them to fill the gap."
Councillor Illingworth says that at first he was fobbed off by the North West Leeds Arms's Length Management Organisation (ALMO) which runs Council houses in north west Leeds.
Apology
He complained to the Council chief executive's office, and even threatened to call in Council auditors.
"The next thing I got was an admission that every single door was the wrong size," he said. "I've received a letter of apology from the contractor to the council."
The apology was sent by Norfolk Frames managing director Paul Preston.
He wrote: "We also know that just apologising will not replace the faith and trust that we have lost.
"We have held a thorough internal enquiry into the matters arising from our meeting and have already taken some actions with more to follow.
"Some installers have been dismissed and others are to undertake varying levels of retraining. Three tiers of management have been disciplined and extensive retraining and training is being given. New working practices have been introduced."
A spokesman for West North West Homes Leeds said: "Not all the doors had this gap, which did not compromise security, but has been caused by many door openings on this estate being larger than normal.
"The contractor accepted that there was an error on its part during the initial measuring of the door openings and co-operated with the team at what was Leeds North West Homes to resolve the problem.
"Norfolk Frames have previously worked successfully with us on door renewal programmes and tenant satisfaction has been very high."
peter.lazenby@ypn.co.uk