Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s demand for £856. This is because the Council has decided the complainant does not have to pay it. The Ombudsman cannot investigate the dispute about the larger debt because the matter has been considered in court.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mrs X, disagrees that she should have to pay money to the Council for her late mother’s care costs. She also disputes a recent demand by the Council for £856.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we believe the matter has been resolved. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and got some information from the Council. I read the court order and comments Mrs X made in response to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

What happened

5. The court decided Mrs X had to pay £4371 to the Council for her late mother’s care costs. Mrs X still disputes this debt. She has made comments about her mother’s capital and that she doubts the accuracy of the Council’s accounts.
6. In 2019 Mrs X wrote to the Council to say she had paid £4275 and she thought she was owed a refund of £188.
7. In response the Council said it did not owe her a refund. Instead the Council said Mrs X needed to pay another £856. The Council sent a letter saying it may take her to court for the £856.
8. Mrs X complains about the £856 which she says she does not owe. She has referred to the demands as harassment although she also says she was confident she would not have to pay it.
9. In response to my enquiries the Council said the £856 was not included in the original court action. The Council has decided to write off the debt and it has not started legal action in respect of the £856. The Council will write to Mrs X to confirm this and to apologise for any distress.

Assessment

10. I will not start an investigation for the following reasons.
11. Mrs X still disputes the original debt. However, this debt has been confirmed by the court and I have no power to investigate any matter that has been the subject of legal action. This means I cannot investigate any concerns Mrs X has raised about how or why the debt was raised or the accuracy of the figures. In addition, the court ordered Mrs X to pay £4371 and, in her letter to the Council, Mrs X said she had paid £4275. As this is less than the amount stated on the court order she is not due a refund.
12. The Council has established that the debt of £856 was not included in the legal action. It has decided to write off the debt which means Mrs X will not have to pay the £856. The Council will write to Mrs X to confirm this and to apologise. There is no need to start an investigation because the matter has been resolved. I appreciate Mrs X may have found the demand distressing but, as she has said she did not think she would not have to pay it, this does not represent an impact which needs an investigation.

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Final decision

13. I will not start an investigation because some parts of the complaint have been considered in court and because the other part of the complaint has been resolved.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman