Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a legal charge placed on the complainants property. This is because the events that led to the charge happened too long ago and there is no evidence of fault in how the Council has communicated with Mr C about the charge more recently.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I will call Mr C, complains about a legal charge the Council placed on his property in 2002. Mr C says he was led to believe the charge would expire after seven years and the Council are now refusing to remove the charge.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the Mr C and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
6. The complainant now has an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I will consider their comments before making a final decision.

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My assessment

7. Nearly twenty years ago, the Council registered a legal charge on Mr C’s property after it loaned him money to adapt his bathroom. Mr C signed a contract that said the charge would remain on his property for 70 years, or until the loan was repaid.
8. Mr C complains that the Council misled him to believe the charge would expire after seven years. He has been in contact with the Council recently and it had told him the charge will be removed when the loan is repaid.
9. I will not investigate Mr C complaint that he was misled at the time the loan was agreed and the charge was registered, this is because this event happened too long ago and it is highly unlikely we could carry out a robust investigation. I do however note that the document Mr C signed did clearly state the length of time the charge would last.
10. I see no evidence of fault in how the Council has communicated with Mr C in recent correspondence. The Council considers the contract between it and Mr C to be valid and has clearly explained why he needs to do to have the charge removed.

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Final decision

11. I will not investigate this complaint. This is because the events leading to the charge being placed on his property happened too long ago and there is no evidence of fault in how the Council has communicated with Mr C more recently.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman