Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council removing the complainant’s council tax discount in 2013. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and it is unlikely an investigation would lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains the Council removed her council tax single person discount in 2013 without telling her. Ms X wants compensation because the Council did not reinstate the discount until this year.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence. I also considered our Assessment Code and invited Ms X to comment on a draft of this decision.

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My assessment

4. Ms X was receiving the single person council tax discount. In 2013 another council told Broxtowe Council that Ms X’s daughter had moved in during June 2013. The Council says its normal practice is to carry out checks when it receives information. But, as it destroys records after six years, it cannot say what it did to verify the information in 2013.
5. The Council removed the discount. In July 2013 it sent Ms X a new bill which showed the discount had been removed and the council tax payments increased from £110 to £140. Ms X pays by direct debit and says she was unaware of the increased payments. The Council sent annual bills from 2014 which all showed there was no discount on the account.
6. By chance, in 2022, Ms X discovered she was not getting the discount. She challenged the removal and the Council reinstated the discount from 2013 and provided a full refund.
7. Ms X says the Council did not do any checks in 2013 and did not tell her it had removed the discount. She paid too much council tax for nine years and wants compensation. She says the Council should have done more checks.
8. In response to the complaint the Council said it has to act on information received from another council. It explained it sent a bill showing the removal of the discount and that, while its normal practice is to check information received, it cannot say what it did as there are no records. The Council said every bill since July 2013 has shown there was no discount and it is the responsibility of the tax payer to check bills are correct. The Council said it would have reinstated the discount sooner if Ms X had made contact before 2022.
9. I will not investigate the complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and because it is unlikely an investigation would lead to a different outcome. The Council acted appropriately in 2013 by acting on information from another council and sending a new bill which showed the loss of the discount and increased payments. I appreciate Ms X may not have read the new bill but the Council did notify her of the change. And, if Ms X had got in touch in 2013, it is likely the Council would have reinstated the discount in 2013. Ms X could also have contacted the Council at any point from July 2013 as each annual bill showed there was no discount. Once Ms X queried the removal in 2022 it was quickly reinstated.
10. I do not know what steps the Council took in 2013 to check the information it had received but, as the records have been deleted, it would not be possible for us to find out. And, in the absence of any records, we could not say there was fault by the Council in 2013.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and it is unlikely an investigation would lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman