Summary: Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of his council tax account and a council tax charge which he disagrees with. We will not investigate as it is unlikely we will find fault by the Council or that we can add to what it has already said. It is reasonable to expect Mr X to appeal against the Council tax charge should he wish to challenge it.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has charged him council tax for a period when it had previously told him no tax was due. Mr X does not consider he should have to pay the charge Mr X also complains the Council’s manner of dealing with him about this constituted bullying and that it tried to deny his right to contact his local councillor about this.

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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 or continue with an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault, or it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome (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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered what Mr X said in his complaint and I have sent him my draft decision on it for his comments. I considered in any comments Mr X made in response in reaching this final decision.

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What I found

5. Mr X complains about council tax bills the council sent to him when he was moving house. Mr X says the Council initially sent him bills showing a zero balance but then bills which indicated he owed money for both properties.
6. In its complaint responses to Mr X, the Council said while a zero bill was issued, this did not mean no charge would be payable for the year, if circumstances were to change. It explained it issued a revised bill for Mr X’s new property due to a change in the length of time it has been empty and unfurnished. The Council said that as Mr X had not provided the names of the new owners of his previous property and no response had been received to a letter the Council had sent there, it kept Mr X as the person liable for council tax at that property and another revised bill was issued.
7. Mr X considers the zero council tax bill was a legal document and should still stand and that as such, he should not have to pay the charge. Mr X is unhappy the Council continued to treat him as the liable person at his previous address. Mr X considers it was not for him to provide details of the new occupants to the Council and feels the Council’s attitude towards him was threatening and bullying.
8. Mr X contacted his local councillor for assistance in this matter and is unhappy that the Council asked him to contact the council tax department direct rather than his local councillor. Mr X is unhappy about this as he feels the Council was trying to block his right for representation.
9. The Valuation Tribunal is the body which hears council tax appeals and decides disputes about council tax liability.

Analysis

10. The Council has explained to Mr X why it issued a revised demand for council tax. We cannot add to this. If Mr X feels the Council is wrong to charge him tax after issuing a zero demand previously then his correct course of action is to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal. It has the power to decide any dispute and what tax is legally due; we do not.
11. The Council has a duty to obtain information so that it can properly levy council tax. I do not consider it was at fault for asking Mr X for details of the new owners of his old home or for sending out a revised bill when it received no confirmation of who the new owners were either from Mr X or the new owners.
12. I do not consider the Council was at fault for asking Mr X to deal directly with the council tax department rather than involving his local councillor. In my view, this was to facilitate a resolution to the issues rather than aimed at blocking Mr X’s democratic rights.
13. For these reasons, we will not investigate.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because Mr X can appeal against any council tax charge he disputes and it is unlikely we will find fault by the Council in respect of his other issues.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman