Summary: Mr X complains at receiving a summons for council tax non-payment despite complying with a previous agreement. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has been remedied to the Ombudsman’s satisfaction.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains at receiving a summons for council tax non-payment despite complying with a previous agreement.

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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 provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions a council has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
5. I considered the complainant’s comments on my draft decision.

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My assessment

6. Mr X says that he agreed with the Council in April 2021 to pay £90 per month towards his council tax bill. Despite that, he says he received a summons from the Council for non-payment which upset him.
7. The Council says that they have no taped phone record of the call but their notes do not confirm that agreement. They say that Mr X previously received a reminder letter in May 2021 and a final notice in July which, if he had queried at the time, would have avoided the need for a summons. Nevertheless, the Council has withdrawn the summons and removed the costs.
8. I consider that the Council’s response is a satisfactory remedy to the complaint and I do not therefore consider that the Ombudsman should now investigate the complaint.

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Final decision

9. I do not intend to investigate this complaint because the matter has been remedied.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman