Summary: Mr B complained about the Council’s actions in respect of recovering council tax arrears and housing benefit overpayments. He also complained about events when he was made homeless. We are unable to investigate the issues raised as Mr B had a right of appeal to tribunals about both matters. We are also unable to find fault in the way the Council has tried to recover the debts. The events leading to his homelessness are too old to investigate now.

The complaint

1. Mr B complains that the London Borough of Ealing (the Council) has not notified him of Council Tax arrears or a housing benefit overpayment dating back several years and taken unreasonable recovery action against him. He also complains that he was made homeless due to benefit problems and the Council refused to help him. On a general level Mr B considers that the Council is persecuting him by asking him to pay such large amounts of money without sufficient evidence.

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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’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Social Entitlement Chamber (also known as the Social Security Appeal Tribunal) is a tribunal that considers housing benefit appeals. (The Social Entitlement Chamber of the First Tier Tribunal)
5. The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction.
6. 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)
7. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

8. I have considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant, made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided. I have written to Mr B and the Council with my draft decision and considered their comments.

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What I found

Housing benefit

9. Mr B was in receipt of housing benefit. In March 2016 the Council requested some information about his entitlement to child benefit and when his self-employment began. It sent a further letter in April 2016. In May 2016 it revised Mr B’s claim going back to February 2015, changing the status of his son from a dependent to a non-dependent. This reduced his entitlement to housing benefit and created an overpayment. The Council notified him of the changes and the overpayment of approximately £2700.
10. Mr B sent emails to the Council in July and September 2016, disputing the overpayments and saying he had provided the requested information.
11. The Council recovered the money from his ongoing entitlement to housing benefit until July 2018 when it sent him an invoice for the remaining balance of around £1800.

Council tax arrears

12. The Council has billed Mr B for council tax as a single person since July 2013. It has sent him bills, reminders and summons each financial year. The outstanding arrears are now over £4000. It has received payments of £114.
13. Mr B had email communication with the Council in February 2017 about Enforcement Agents trying to recover the debts. The Council requested a payment proposal.
14. In June 2018 the Council said it would accept £30 a month for three months. It also said his claim for welfare assistance in respect of the arrears had been unsuccessful because he had not provided the requested information. It said in September 2018 that the payment arrangement had ended. In November 2018 the Council said it would proceed with recovery action and Mr B needed to start paying the arrears.

Homelessness

15. Mr B applied for a discretionary housing payment in June 2017 for a rent deposit and removal costs for a new property. The Council was going to make the payments, but the agent then withdrew the property, so the Council refused the claim. Mr B asked the Council to keep the claim open while he found a new property, but the Council said it could not do this.
16. Mr B left his property on 31 July 2017 and was homeless. He complained to the Council on 2 August 2017 about the failure to pay a discretionary housing payment which caused him to be street homeless. The Council replied on 11 August 2017 explaining why the payment had not been made, that it could not make a payment for a property which was not in Ealing or if Mr B did not have an active housing benefit claim with Ealing. Mr B did not contact the Council again about this issue. He moved into a new property in a different area.

Complaint

17. Mr B complained to the Ombudsman at the end of September 2018, primarily about the housing benefit and council tax debts, but he also raised the events leading to his homelessness in July 2017. We referred the complaint back to the Council to investigate and respond. Mr B complained to us again in July 2019.

Analysis

Housing benefit

18. The Council notified Mr B of the housing benefit overpayments in May 2016. He had a right of appeal if he wished to dispute them. He has also known about the overpayments for more than three years.
19. I cannot investigate the complaint about the overpayments because Mr B had a right of appeal to the Tribunal and the events are too old to consider now.

Council Tax

20. The Council notified Mr B of his liability for council tax each year since 2013. It has also sent him reminders and summonses for arrears. I cannot identify any fault in its actions. Mr B has not paid the amounts owing. If he disputed his liability, he had a right of appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.
21. I cannot investigate the complaint about council tax because he had a right of appeal to the Tribunal and the debts are too old to consider now.
22. On a general level there is no evidence that the Council is persecuting Mr B: it is seeking to recover money Mr B owes. If Mr B cannot afford to pay he needs to contact the Council with details of his income and expenditure with a view to arranging an affordable repayment plan.

Homelessness

23. Mr B first raised this issue with the Council in August 2017 and the Council replied promptly explaining why it could not award a discretionary housing payment. Mr B did not raise this issue again until September 2018 and only as a secondary issue to the stopping of his housing benefit.
24. I cannot investigate this issue now because the events are too old; Mr B had the opportunity to pursue the complaint with the Council at the time and I consider it was reasonable for him to have done so.

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Final decision

25. I have completed my investigation into this complaint as Mr B had a right of appeal against the housing benefit overpayments and his liability for council tax. I also am unable to identify any fault in the way the Council has tried to recover the debts and the homelessness issue is too old to investigate now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman