Summary: We will not investigate this council tax complaint because the Council has provided a fair remedy for a lack of clarity in a phone call.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mrs X, says the Council told her she would not have to pay council tax for a few months. She says the Council agreed it gave her the wrong information but it will not waive the council tax.

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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 the Council has provided a fair remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I read the complaint and the Council’s responses. I listened to the phone call and considered the council tax bills. I also considered comments Mrs X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP)

4. People who receive housing benefit or the housing costs element of Universal Credit can apply for a DHP if they need additional help to pay their rent. People who do not receive housing benefit or Universal Credit (housing costs) cannot get a DHP.

Council tax discretionary relief

5. The Council can reduce someone’s council tax if they are in financial hardship and there are exceptional circumstances. The person must apply for discretionary council tax relief. This is different to a DHP.

What happened

6. Mrs X, and her husband, were under financial pressure during the first lockdown in 2020. They had called the Council and the Council had suspended the council tax payments for two months. Mr X called the Council to ask what would happen next. During the call the officer stated the payments had been deferred, that they would resume after two months, and that the only way the annual council tax could be reduced would be if Mr & Mrs X made a successful claim for council tax reduction (CTR). The officer invited Mr X to apply for CTR. At times, the officer referred to payments being cancelled. She also said she would send a new bill showing when the council tax instalments were due to resume. At times, the officer became muddled as to when the payments would resume.
7. A few days after the call the Council issued a council tax bill. The bill showed the council tax due for the whole year and said the first instalment was due on 31 May. This was wrong because the Council had suspended payments for two months. The Council sent an adjusted bill showing that payments were due to restart in July.
8. In May Mrs X applied for a DHP. In June the Council rejected the DHP application because Mrs X does not receive housing benefit or Universal Credit.
9. Mrs X complained and said she had been told she would not have to pay council tax for a few months. She said there was a verbal contract, made during the call, which stated they did not have to pay. In response, the Council explained that it had deferred payments for a couple of months but it does not cancel council tax. It said it had listened to the call and agreed the officer could have given a clearer statement that payments had been deferred. It explained it had deferred payments for two months but that meant a higher amount was due over the remaining months. The Council did not agree there was a legal contract which meant Mrs X did not have to pay. The Council awarded £75 in recognition of the lack of clarity. This reduced the arrears to £276. The Council says Mrs X has not paid the arrears.
10. In November the Council invited Mr X to apply for discretionary council tax hardship relief. Mr X declined to apply. In an email to Mrs X’s MP the Council again invited an application for discretionary relief.

Assessment

11. I have listened to the call and, while the officer was trying to be helpful she was, at times, muddled in her explanations and could have been more explicit that the council tax had not been cancelled. That said, she did refer to payments being deferred and clearly said the council tax would only be reduced if Mrs & Mr X claimed CTR. In addition, a few days after the call, Mrs X received a bill which showed full council tax for the year was due and there was no reduction. So, even though Mrs X says they were misled, this was promptly clarified. If Mrs X wants to argue that the Council has breached a verbal contract then that is a matter she would need to pursue in court. She may first wish to obtain legal advice.
12. Mrs X says the Council told her MP they had declined to apply for discretionary relief when she had applied for a DHP in May. Mrs X says this shows further fault by the Council and is another example of how badly the Council has treated them. However, the application in May was for a DHP which is different to an application for discretionary council tax relief.
13. Mrs X says she would not have accepted the Council’s offer if she had known it was only to defer payments. However, council tax has to be paid and Mrs X’s only options were to either make immediate payments or accept the two month deferment.
14. I will not start an investigation because the £75 compensation is a fair remedy for the complaint. In reaching this view I have considered that Mrs X still benefited from the full range of services funder by council tax, that the phone call contained information that payments had only been deferred, and that Mrs X quickly received a bill showing full council tax was due. In addition, the Council invited Mr X to apply for discretionary relief which, if awarded, would have reduced the bill.

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Final decision

15. I will not start an investigation because the Council has provided a fair remedy.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman