Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the delay by the Council to forward Mr X’s housing benefit appeal to a tribunal. This is because the complaint is late and the complainant has now used his appeal rights.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to forward a valid appeal to tribunal. He made the appeal to the Council in 2013.
2. Mr X complains this caused stressful delays. He would like the Council to apologise and pay him compensation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
4. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
5. The Social Entitlement Chamber (also known as the Social Security Appeal Tribunal) is a tribunal that considers housing benefit appeals. (The Social Entitlement Chamber of the First Tier Tribunal)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Mr X complains the Council did not rightly forward his appeal to tribunal in 2013 when they approached him about HB overpayment. This matter has been dealt with at First Tier Tribunal in 2021.
9. Mr X submitted an appeal in 2018 which was initially classed as a late appeal but subsequently overturned. This matter has been dealt with at First Tier Tribunal in 2021.
10. Mr X could have approached us to consider these issues within 12 months of him becoming aware of them. It is reasonable that we might have expected him to do so.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because:

• It is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.
• There was a right of appeal to a tribunal which Mr X has since used.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman