Summary: We found fault on Mr J’s complaint about the Council’s use of enforcement agents. Its failures to act on a notification by the Valuation Tribunal about a hearing, and a further failure to provide it with full documentation, led to the delay of the hearing by 8 months. The agreed action remedies the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Mr J complains about the Council pursuing him for £8,290.58 unpaid council tax and:
1. failing to act on the offer he made to pay by monthly instalments in August 2021; and
2. prematurely returning his case to enforcement agents before waiting for the Valuation Tribunal proceedings to conclude on his appeal about liability.
2. As a result, he was caused unnecessary stress as he now worries about the removal of his car, which he relies on as a family carer.

Back to top

What I have and have not investigated

3. I have not investigated complaint a).
4. This is because I have not investigated any complaint about the Council’s actions before February 2022. Mr J complained to us in February 2023. The law says 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. I have seen no good reason to look at earlier events.
5. Reference to events before February 2022 are for background information only to help put current events into context.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

6. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
7. 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’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
8. 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)

Back to top

Council tax

9. Council tax is usually payable on an empty home and a council can charge an extra amount called ‘a premium’ where it was empty for two years or more. How much is payable depends on how long the property remained empty.
10. If a property is being refurbished, a council will say when council tax needs to be paid from if major home improvements were done. Councils send out a ‘completion notice’ which gives the date council tax is payable from.
11. The Council does not charge council tax for the first calendar month where a property is unoccupied and unfurnished. After this, the charge goes to the full amount unless an exemption applies. For properties left empty for more than two years, from April 2019 the council tax payable is double that of occupied homes.

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

12. I considered all the information Mr J sent, the notes I made of our telephone conversation, and the Council’s response to my enquiries. I sent a copy of my draft decision to Mr J and the Council. I considered their responses.

Back to top

What I found

13. Mr J moved in to Property A in November 2014, which he owns. He remained there until moving out in 2016. He claims the property was renovated from 2016 to November 2019 and he only moved back in during March 2020. He accepts the property was unoccupied from mid-2016 to early 2020. The Council now claims council tax arrears and premium charges from 2015 to 2020.
14. These are key dates:

2021:

15. August: Mr J offered to pay £50 a month in a letter in which he also raised other issues about the charges. The Council responded to his letter, told him about appeal rights but failed to respond to his offer. It later said this level of payment would not have been acceptable anyway due to the large amount owed.
16. September: The Council started recovery proceedings when the courts made a liability order against Mr J. He was told he could appeal to the Valuation Tribunal (the tribunal) but, pending any decision, he would remain liable for charges.
17. Later that month, the tribunal sent a Notice of Acknowledgement and would arrange the appeal within the next five months.

2022:

18. February: The tribunal told the Council the hearing would take place in May.
19. April: The Council received notice from the tribunal that because its appeal team failed to act on the letter sent in February, it was now postponed. The hearing would take place in December. The Council apologised for this failure which delayed the hearing taking place.
20. September: The Council referred the case to enforcement agents and confirmed enforcement continues even if an appeal is sent to the tribunal. A pre-warning letter was sent to Mr J asking him to contact the agents.
21. December: The tribunal adjourned the hearing. This was because only Mr J was sent a full document package. The tribunal had only been sent part documentation by the Council. The Council apologised for this and accepted it delayed the hearing taking place sooner.
22. 2023:
23. January: The tribunal heard the appeal. It asked the Council to place enforcement on hold while it decided the case.
24. February: The tribunal issued its decision which was the premium charges were correct. It dismissed Mr J’s appeal. About a week later, Mr J wrote to the Council asking for it to reach an arrangement with him for repayment. The Council referred him back to the agents.
25. The Council confirmed the hold it put on enforcement proceedings remained throughout the complaints process.

My findings

26. I make the following findings:
1. The Council accepts failing to act on the notification the tribunal sent about the hearing in February 2022. This is fault. I am satisfied this caused Mr J an injustice. It delayed the hearing to the next available date seven months later. He lost the opportunity to have the hearing dealt with earlier and possibly be in the position he is in now in terms of accepting the monies are owed and agreeing a repayment plan.
2. There was nothing to prevent the Council from instructing enforcement agents before the tribunal hearing.
3. The Council also accepts failing to send the tribunal a full package of appeal papers in December. This meant the hearing was adjourned until January 2023 with it issuing a decision the following month. I am satisfied this failure delayed the hearing and decision by the tribunal by one month. Again, he lost the opportunity to have the hearing dealt with earlier and possibly be in the position he is now in terms of accepting monies are owed and agreeing a repayment plan.
4. I am also satisfied Mr J experienced avoidable distress during 4 months of this period caused by the Council instructing agents to recover the debt in September 2022. Had the hearing taken place in May, this may well have been avoided. I say this because Mr J’s current behaviour shows it likely he would have reached an agreement to make regular payments to clear the debt.

Back to top

Agreed action

27. I considered our guidance on remedies.
28. I also took account of the Council’s goodwill gesture set out in its enquiry response. It said it would ask for the return of the account from the agents and for the £300 a month Mr J has recently agreed to pay, to be paid directly to it. It will waive the agent’s fees of £736. I expect the Council to carry this action out.
29. The Council agreed to take the following action within four weeks of the final decision on this complaint:
1. Send Mr J a written apology for the failure to act on the tribunal’s notification and for not sending it a full package of documents which delayed it hearing his appeal.
2. Review and identify why it failed to act on the tribunal’s notification of the hearing and act to ensure this cannot be repeated in future.
3. Review and identify why a full package of documents was not sent to the tribunal and act to ensure this failure cannot be repeated in the future.
4. Pay £100 to Mr J for the avoidable distress its failures caused.
30. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

Back to top

Final decision

31. I found fault on Mr J’s complaint against the Council. The agreed action remedies the injustice caused.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman