Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about council tax arrears and an attachment of earnings order. This is because it is a late complaint and because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains that the Council unlawfully deducted money from her wages for council tax arrears. Ms X says the Council did not get liability orders and she wants a refund and an apology.

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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 an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and the Council’s responses. I saw copies of the liability orders and letters Ms X sent to the Council in 2017 about an Attachment of Earnings Order. I considered comments Ms X made in respect of a draft of this decision.

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What I found

Council tax arrears

5. If someone does not pay their council tax the Council can ask the magistrates for a court order called a liability order. After the magistrates have granted a liability order there are different ways the Council can collect the debt. For example, it can instruct bailiffs or ask the person’s employer to deduct money from their wages (Attachment of Earnings Order (AOE)).

What happened

6. The court granted two liability orders in May 2009. I have seen copies of the liability orders. I have also seen a financial questionnaire Ms X completed in respect of the debt. The bailiffs contacted Ms X in June 2009. In July 2009 Ms X contacted the Council to dispute the debt and to say she could not pay the amount requested. I have seen this letter.
7. The court granted another liability order in 2011. Ms X moved house in 2011 and did not provide a forwarding address. The Council traced Ms X in 2012 and wrote to her about the arrears. The Council said Ms X owed £3793. I have seen these letters. Ms X did not make a payment arrangement.
8. Ms X moved again. The Council traced her in 2017 and, in October 2017, told her it was going to collect the arrears through an AOE. Ms X’s employer deducted money from her pay until April 2019 when she retired.
9. I have seen letters Ms X sent to the Council in 2017 to dispute the debt. Ms X specifically referred to the AOEs in at least one letter and she spoke to a Council officer. In 2017 the Council sent her copies of letters from 2009 and confirmed it obtained liability orders in 2009 and 2011.
10. Ms X complained to the Council in April 2019. She complained to the Ombudsman in 2019. She says the Council never obtained liability orders and has unlawfully taken money from her wages. She says she knew nothing about the AOEs until February 2019.
11. The Council says Ms X still owes £1251. It has invited her to make a payment offer. The Council might re-instruct bailiffs if Ms X does not agree a payment plan.

Assessment

12. I will not start an investigation because this is a late complaint. Ms X contacted the Council about the arrears in 2009. She challenged the rate of repayment but did not dispute the legality of the liability order. Ms X could have complained in 2009 or in 2012 when the Council wrote to say she had owed council tax for her previous address. Ms X also made contact in 2017 when the deductions started. Ms X says she knew nothing about the AOEs until 2019 but I have seen letters Ms X wrote, in 2017, about the AOE. Ms X could have complained in 2017. But, she did not complain to the Ombudsman until October 2019 by which time she had already paid some of the arrears through the AOE. This is significantly longer than 12 months and I have not seen any good reason to investigate such a late complaint.
13. I also will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. Ms X says the Council did not get liability orders. But, I have seen copies of the liability orders and copies of the letters the Council sent warning Ms X it was applying for liability orders.

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Final decision

14. I will not start an investigation because this is a late complaint and because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman