London Borough of Lewisham (20 011 619)

Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax support

Decision : Closed after initial enquiries

Decision date : 22 Mar 2021

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council not providing clear explanations of changes in the complainant’s council tax liability. It is unlikely we would find evidence of fault causing the complainant significant injustice.

The complaint

  1. The complainant, who I refer to here as Mr X, has complained about how the Council communicated changes in the amount of council tax he has to pay.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

  1. 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’.
  2. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if, for example, we believe:
  • it is unlikely we would find fault;
  • the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained; or
  • any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

  1. I have considered what Mr X said in his complaint and background information provided by the Council. Mr X commented on a draft before I made this decision.

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What I found

  1. Mr X’s partner, Mr Y, complained to the Council in May 2020 after it wrote to Mr X with a letter stating his entitlement to council tax reduction (CTR) had changed. The Council also sent Mr X a revised council tax bill.
  2. Mr Y said he wanted the Council to:
    • explain what had happened;
    • ensure council tax updates are accompanied by a clear explanation of any changes or amendments; and
    • offer customers with accessibility and mental health issues an alternative, easy way to contact it and complain. He said the Council has a duty to do this under the Equalities Act 2010.
  3. Following extensive correspondence with the Council, Mr X complained to us.
  4. I have seen the letters sent by the Council to Mr X about changes to his CTR entitlement. The first of these, which prompted the complaint to the Council, said CTR had been reviewed because of a change in Mr Y’s income. The letter gave details of how the change was calculated. The letter also provided a postal address and website where enquiries could be made.
  5. Following the change In CTR entitlement, the Council sent Mr X a revised council tax bill. This showed the amount of council tax Mr X had to pay and showed the revised CTR amount. The bill also included a website address, a postal address and a telephone number which Mr X could use if he had any questions.
  6. It is evident Mr X and Mr Y preferred communication by email. The Council explained in response to their complaint it was not possible to contact the council tax department by email because of the effects of COVID-19.
  7. I have seen no evidence Mr X or Mr Y tried unsuccessfully to contact the Council for an explanation of the CTR changes or council tax liability using one of the available methods.

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Final decision

  1. I have decided we will not investigate this complaint. This is because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council causing significant injustice to Mr X or Mr Y.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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