Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint that the Council refused to issue him with a blue badge and his wife with a companion bus pass. Mr X has now sent the Council the information it required and it has issued both the badge and the pass.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains that the Council refuses to accept he is blind and therefore will not issue him with a blue badge or his wife with a companion bus pass.
2. Mr X says that as a result, it is affecting how much he and Mrs X can leave their house.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Ombudsman investigates 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 with an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Since complaining to the Ombudsman, Mr X has provided the information the Council required for it to reissue his blue badge and a companion bus pass for his wife. An Ombudsman investigation would not lead to a different outcome. Therefore, we will not investigate these matters further.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman