Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council refused to arrange repairs to the work it funded through a Disabled Facilities Grant in 2013. This is because we would be unlikely to find fault.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council will not arrange repairs to the work it funded through a Disabled Facilities Grant in 2013. She says, since the Council originally arranged the builders and funded the work, it should arrange for the same builders to carry out repairs.

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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 or continue with an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered the information provided by Mrs X in her complaint and the Council’s responses to her.
4. I sent a copy of my draft decision to Mrs X, who had an opportunity to comment on it.

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What I found

Background

5. Mrs X’s son received a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) in 2013. The DFG was used to build an extension to Mrs X’s property.
6. The Council arranged and supervised the builder for Mrs X.
7. In mid-2019 Mrs X noticed a damp smell in the extension and found the floor to be wet. Heating engineers determined the problem was not due to the heating or cold water supply.
8. Mrs X contacted the Council who sent a surveyor to inspect the extension. The surveyor visited Mrs X’s property and found no damp or smell.
9. Mrs X asked her water company to inspect the pipes. She says the water company found some plastic bagging trapped in the pipes and suggested this might be causing the smell.
10. Mrs X asked the Council to arrange for the problem to be investigated and repairs carried out. The Council told Mrs X that, although it had arranged the builders, the contract was between her and the builders, so the Council was not responsible for arranging any repairs. It also told Mrs X the work was approved by both building control and the water company when completed.

Analysis

11. Although councils often arrange builders for people who received DFGs, councils have no legal responsibility for the standard of the work. If someone disputes the quality of the work, they would need to pursue the builder privately.
12. There is nothing to suggest Mrs X was unhappy with the quality of the work or had concerns about how the Council supervised the work at the time it was done in 2013.
13. Although the Council funded and arranged the works, it is not responsible for the standard of the work or any subsequent repairs. Is it unlikely we would find fault with the Council’s decision not to arrange for investigations or repairs.

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Final decision

14. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because we would be unlikely to find fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman