Summary: Mrs X complains about Council delay in issuing her new blue badge and about the service provided to her. The Ombudsman will not investigate the complaint because the badge has now been issued and there are insufficient grounds to warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to as Mrs X, says that when she had difficulties in getting her blue badge renewal application processed the Council did not check with her if she needed any reasonable adjustments due to her poor sight and, despite asking, she was told she would not be called back. This caused her distress and frustration.

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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, or
• the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. In considering the complaint I reviewed the information provided by Mrs X and the Council. I gave Mrs X the opportunity to comment on my draft decision and considered what she said.

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What I found

4. The Council sent Mrs X a renewal reminder letter for her blue badge on 1 May 2020 as it was due to expire on 24 July.
5. After an initial unsuccessful attempt, and after having spoken to an adviser in the Council’s call centre, Mrs X sent in her online renewal application form on 25 June, along with a copy of her Personal Independence Payment (PIP) yearly update letter.
6. On 1 July the Council reviewed the application and emailed Mrs X to explain that it required the front page of her PIP Statement of Entitlement so it could link this with the Moving Around Descriptors she had submitted. In the text of the email the Council stated “Please send in a photocopy of the official DWP Statement of Entitlement to PIP. This must be the complete document, dated within the last 12 months, contain details of your mobility descriptor (the points scored for Moving Around) and state the end date of your award. For an up to date copy of your entitlement, contact 0800 121 4433”.
7. Mrs X rang the call centre and spoke to staff there about what she was required to send. On 9 July Mrs X submitted further documentation and gave her phone number saying “If someone would kindly make contact by telephone (due to eye sight) should it be necessary in the future”.
8. Unfortunately, Mrs X had resubmitted the same information she had previously submitted so on 16 July the Council sent a further email explaining that the yearly update could not be accepted and that it required the complete statement of entitlement document to be able to proceed. Mrs X rang the call centre the same day and spoke to an adviser who repeated this information.
9. On 16 July Mrs X submitted a formal complaint saying she had been attempting to renew her blue badge since May, that since making her online application she had been asked multiple times to submit information and that despite checking with advisers at the call centre that what she intended to send was correct, it turned out to be incorrect. She said it had only been made clear to her in the conversation earlier that day that what was required was an updated Statement of Entitlement from the PIP and that she was unhappy this had not been advised earlier and that she had not been telephoned.
10. On 28 July the Council responded to Mrs X’s complaint. It set out what had occurred and what was still required to complete her application. It reassured her that due to the pandemic there was a relaxation of the rules and she could carry on using her old badge.
11. Distressed her application was still not complete, Mrs X complained to the Ombudsman. In the meantime, on 30 July, the Council emailed Mrs X again to repeat the information it required and to explain that the PIP evidence she had provided expired on 24/01/2021 so it could only issue the badge until that date.
12. Mrs X called the call centre again and staff were able to explain to her why, as her blue badge application was linked to her PIP, this was the case. On 5 August the Council emailed Mrs X to confirm her application had been accepted and that she could make payment to complete the process. Mrs X did this and the Council has issued the new badge.

Assessment

13. I understand the process of applying for the renewal of her blue badge has caused Mrs X distress and frustration and I note that, as she says, not everyone is comfortable on the internet and so help and patience can be required.
14. There was clearly some breakdown in communication which prevented Mrs X from understanding what she needed to send in and that her calls to the call centre did not make this clear to her until later on. In responding to her complaint, I note the Council said that while all its correspondence had requested the relevant missing item, it apologised if it has not been clear which document had been required to continue with the application.
15. Mrs X was understandably anxious to complete her application, but it did not formally expire until 24 July and the Council explained that it could continue to be used until her current application had been completed.

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Final decision

16. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the badge has now been issues and there are insufficient grounds to warrant an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman