Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council wrongly charged the complainant for council tax. This is because it is not unreasonable to expect her to have used her right of appeal against the Council’s decision on her council tax liability.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss A, complained the Council wrongly charged her for council tax.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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.
5. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
8. Miss A has had the opportunity to comment of my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making my final decision.

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My assessment

9. Miss A told us the Council issued her with a court summons for a council tax bill from 2019. She said ex-tenants occupying the property were liable for the bill. Miss A told us the ex-tenants vacated the property early without her knowledge. She said she provided the Council with evidence to support her case. Miss A wants the Council to refund her the money she paid and pursue the ex-tenant for the council tax bill. She said evidence shows the Council is at fault.
10. The Council considered Miss A’s complaint. It said it made the tenant liable for the period of the tenancy agreement supplied. It said it made Miss A liable after the tenant said they had moved out. The Council said if Miss A does not agree with the dates provided, she can supply them with evidence to show the tenant continued to occupy the property. Miss A said she received the court summons “out of the blue” in 2022. But the Council said it issued the closing bill in 2019 and reminder letters in 2020. We would not be now able to prove what happened to those letters. We cannot investigate a complaint about the Council starting court proceedings.
11. If someone disagrees with a decision that they are liable for paying council tax, they can write to the Council about the matter. If they do not agree with the outcome, they can then appeal to the Valuation Tribunal Service. We have no powers to decide council tax appeals. The Valuation Tribunal is an independent expert body whose decisions are binding on councils. So, it would not have been unreasonable to expect Miss A to have used the specific remedy the law provides for people who wish to challenge council tax liability.
12. Miss A has also complained about how the Council dealt with her complaint. While I understand Miss A is unhappy with how the Council dealt with her complaint, the substantive issue she has complained about is her council tax liability. Where we have decided not to investigate the substantive issue complained about, we would not consider a standalone complaint about the Council’s complaint handling.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Miss A’s complaint because it is not unreasonable to expect her to have used her right of appeal against the Council’s decision.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman