Leeds City Council (22 017 785)
Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 18 Apr 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Council tax payments as there is no evidence of fault and she can appeal to a tribunal. She can also pursue a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
The complaint
- Ms X says that the Council has not provided accurate Council tax bills, has failed to award a discount and not responded to a request for information.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
- The Information Commissioner's Office considers complaints about freedom of information. Its decision notices may be appealed to the First Tier Tribunal (Information Rights). So where we receive complaints about freedom of information, we normally consider it reasonable to expect the person to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner.
- We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in the decision making, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Ms X says that the Council has threatened enforcement action for unpaid Council tax without providing accurate bills.
- The Council has provided evidence of detailed bills sent to Ms X. I am satisfied that there is no fault in the Council’s response to this part of the complaint.
- Any remaining dissatisfaction with the Council’s response to a subject access request can be pursued further to the Information Commissioner’s Office. I consider that this is the appropriate way forward and the Ombudsman will not therefore investigate this part of the complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because she can appeal to a tribunal. There is no evidence of administrative fault and she can pursue her case to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman