Complaint outcomes: Other topics

This section covers complaints about:

• Cemeteries and crematoria, such as burial plots, crematoria management and condition of graveyards
• Consumer affairs, such as trading standards, trades description and consumer advice
• Contracts and business matters, such as contracts, tendering (but not the sale of land - see land below) Many complaints about these issues are outside the Ombudsman's jurisdiction
• Disposal on death, such as the treatment of a dead person or their possessions
• Drainage, such as drains, sewers, cesspits, septic tanks, flood prevention
• Land, such as:
  • sale and disposal of land
  • purchase of land
  • sites for travellers and gypsies
  • compulsory purchase
  • conveyancing and land searches
  • commons and village greens
  • council-owned land (including empty and abandoned sites)
• Leisure and culture, such as:
  • allotments and parks
  • community centres and youth clubs
  • libraries and museums
  • sport facilities
  • tourism
• Licensing, such as:
  • licences for alcohol, caravan sites, care homes, gambling, public entertainment and sex shops
  • licensing for council-owned premises
  • markets and street traders
  • taxis and private hire vehicles
• Registry services, such as:
  • registration of births, marriages and deaths
  • weddings and civil partnerships
  • treasure trove

Recent cases in this category are shown below.

London Borough of Merton (09 016 788)
The Council delayed over the redevelopment of a site where a new community facility was to be provided,

16 February 2011

Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council (09 014 290)
The Council raised the price of a narrow strip of land it had agreed to sell to a woman for her extension – effectively valuing a small triangle of land, 7 inches at its widest point, at £4,000.

14 February 2011

Castle Point Borough Council (09 012 990)
The Council double charged licensed taxi drivers for Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks.

07 February 2011

North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council (08 020 384)
The Council told a man he was barred from Council meetings without considering all the relevant factors.

19 May 2010

Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council (06C15879 and one other - Further report)
The Council refused to apologise and pay compensation to two allotment holders whose complaints had been upheld by the LGO.

25 February 2010