Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s use of bailiffs to collect council tax arrears and a complaint about the conduct of the bailiffs. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains the bailiffs refused to accept a reasonable offer of payment. He says he is still being pursued by bailiffs and they threatened him with an Attachment of Earnings Order (AEO). Mr X also complains about the conduct of the bailiffs.

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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. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and information about the action taken by the bailiffs. I also considered our Assessment Code and comments Mr X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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My assessment

5. Mr X owes council tax of £571 plus £80 summons costs for 2021/22. He also owes £627 plus £80 costs for 2019/20. A reminder has been issued for 2022/23 because he owes £90.
6. Bailiffs tried to collect the arrears but were unsuccessful. They returned one account to the Council in 2020 and returned another account in December 2022. The bailiff fees have been cancelled apart from fees incurred in 2019; the fees were collected by a different bailiff firm to the one Mr X has complained about to us.
7. In February 2023 the Council asked Mr X to complete an income/expenditure form and to make a payment offer to the Council. The Council told me Mr X has not returned the form and has not made an offer.
8. Mr X offered the bailiffs £65 a month in 2021. The bailiffs repeatedly asked Mr X to support the offer with a completed income/expenditure form but Mr X did not do so. He sent some forms but they were empty or incomplete. Later in 2021 Mr X offered £50 but again did not provide the income/expenditure form. Mr X says he did send the form.
9. The Council apologised to Mr X for referring to an AEO. This was an inappropriate reference because Mr X has not provided details of his employer.
10. The current position is that Mr X owes about £1198 in addition to the council tax at reminder stage for 2022/23. All the arrears are now with the Council and Mr X has not made a payment plan and not provided details of his income/expenditure. Mr X has not paid any money to bailiffs.
11. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. Mr X made an offer in 2021 but this was not accepted because, despite requests, Mr X did not support the offer with a completed income/expenditure form. Although Mr X says he did return the form I have not seen any evidence to support this while the bailiff notes, and Council letters, repeatedly ask for this information. This does not need to be pursued because Mr X did not pay any money to bailiffs and the accounts have been returned to the Council
12. Mr X denies the bailiff fees have been waived but I re-checked this with the Council. The Council confirmed all the fees associated with the bailiffs who are the subject of this complaint have been waived. And, we will not investigate the fees incurred in 2019 as they arose too long ago and there is nothing to suggest fault in the way they were incurred.
13. Mr X is also complaining about the conduct of the bailiffs. I have read the notes of the bailiff actions and see nothing requiring an investigation. And, as I have said, Mr X did not pay anything to the bailiffs and the bailiffs have returned the accounts to the Council.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman