London Borough of Croydon (04B16079)

Planning advice                           Maladministration causing injustice

13 June 2007

The complaint

Ms B complained that the Council advised her neighbour in 2001 that works he was carrying out did not require planning consent. In 2003, when Ms B took her own legal proceedings under the Party Wall Act 1996, the Council decided that its earlier advice had been incorrect and that planning permission was indeed needed for the development. The neighbour’s subsequent planning application was refused by the Council.

What happened

The works the neighbour carried out in 2001 included the construction of a wall and a flight of steps, and the undercutting and excavation of the foundations of the driveway and garage of Ms B’s property, including a party wall. When the work was reported to the Council, it did not record accurately details of the site and the works carried out. This failure to ascertain adequate facts in 2001 meant that it incorrectly advised the neighbour that the work did not require planning permission at that time.

The Ombudsman’s view

The Ombudsman found that the Council had delayed in concluding that a breach of planning control had occurred, and its enforcement action was also delayed by two years. At least some of Ms B’s legal costs could have been avoided if the Council had dealt promptly and appropriately with the development affecting her home.

The outcome

To remedy the injustice that Ms B suffered as a result of the Council’s failure, the Ombudsman recommended that the Council should:

• pay Ms B £2,000 for the avoidable distress and anxiety she suffered from believing that the Council could not assist her; and
• pay her a further £4,268 which represented a 50 per cent contribution to her legal and professional costs.

Date Updated: 13/01/09