Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about council tax. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council, and if Miss X disputes liability, she can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Miss X, complains the Council is pursuing her for council tax. Miss X says the debt relates to a property she shared with her ex-partner. Miss X says she should only be liable for half of the debt.

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 would find fault. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), 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 Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction.

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. I considered Miss X’s complaint to the Ombudsman and information from the Council. I also gave Miss X the opportunity to comment on a draft statement before reaching a final decision on her complaint.

Back to top

What I found

6. Council tax is a system of local taxation collected by local authorities. It is a tax on domestic properties. Usually one person, called the ‘liable person’, pays council tax. Couples living together will both be 'jointly and severally liable'. This means they are responsible as a couple but also individually. This is the case even if there is only one name on the bill, and applies if the couple is married, cohabiting or in a civil partnership.
7. If a person is joint severally responsible for council tax, they are responsible for paying all the council tax bill, not just a share of it. If a person pays their 'share' but the other person does not, councils can pursue either or both parties for the whole amount.
8. Miss X is unhappy because the Council is pursuing her for all the council tax debt. But it is not fault for the Council to do this if it cannot trace her ex-partner, or if they will not pay their half of the bill. Without evidence of fault an investigation by the Ombudsman is not appropriate.
9. If Miss X wants to challenge her liability for council tax, she can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal. It is the expert, impartial body, set up by Parliament for members of the public to challenge council tax decisions. When there is a right of appeal to a tribunal, the Ombudsman normally expects people to use that right, unless it is unreasonable for them to do so. I do not consider that to be the case here.

Back to top

Final decision

10. The Ombudsman will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council, and if Miss X disputes liability, she can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman