Summary: Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of matters related to his benefits and how it dealt with his complaint about this. We will not investigate the complaint because it is unlikely we can add to the investigation already carried out by the Council and an investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to as Mr X, complains about the Council’s fault in suggesting to him that it would take some of the extra Universal Credit paid to him by the Government during the COVID pandemic. He also complains about its handling of his complaint about this matter and says it has adversely affected his mental health.

Back to top

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 could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. In considering the complaint I reviewed the information provided by Mr X and the Council, including its response to his complaint. I gave Mr X the opportunity to comment on my draft decision and considered what he said.

Back to top

What I found

4. Due to an error with its computer software, the Council wrote to Mr X suggesting that it would be taking some of the additional benefit he had been given as part of an increase to Universal Credit payments made by the Government during the COVID pandemic.
5. Although this error was corrected 10 days later, Mr X complained to the Council about the matter but he did not receive a reply.
6. When Mr X complained to us about this, we referred the complaint back to the Council to address it under its complaints procedure. After some delay, the Council addressed the complaint and it was considered at the final stage of its procedure by the Council’s Appeals and Complaints Panel.
7. The Panel decided that there was no evidence the Council had known about the error before it wrote to Mr X or that there were fundamental flaws in the Council’s system which required the audit Mr X had suggested. However, it did acknowledge it had taken 10 days for the Council to identify there had been a problem with Mr X’s benefit calculation and for it to be amended.
8. Unhappy with the Council’s response to his complaint, Mr X asked us to investigate it.

Assessment

9. While I understand the events about which Mr X has complained have had a negative impact on him, we do not investigate every complaint we receive.
10. In this case the Council has already apologised to Mr X and addressed his complaint in some detail under its complaints procedure. As it is unlikely that an investigation by the Ombudsman would be likely to add to the investigation already carried out by the Council, or lead to a different outcome, we will not investigate the complaint.
11. In responding to my draft decision, Mr X says the Council did not write to him to tell him part of his complaint had been upheld but this point is noted in the Panel’s Decision Notice on page 2 and I have seen no evidence to support Mr X’s claim the Panel was biased.
12. Mr X says the Council knew of the error before its letters were sent out but the Council has said it did not. Although Mr X has highlighted the concerted efforts he made to ensure the Council dealt with the problem, and that it gave him contradictory information and did not initially treated his concerns as a formal complaint, the issue was resolved within 10 days and there are no outstanding issues which warrant an investigation by the Ombudsman.
13. Mr X says he has ongoing concerns about the Council’s use of the same system which led to the error in his case but this was caused by a software issue which has now been rectified.

Back to top

Final decision

14. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it is unlikely we can add to the investigation already carried out by the Council and an investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman