Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council using an Attachment of Earnings Order to collect council tax arrears. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains the Council has used Attachment of Earning Orders (AOE) since 2016 to collect council tax arrears. Ms X says the Council has not applied all the deductions to her account, has had three AOEs in place at once, is targeting her and has ignored the impact on her well-being.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate 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), as amended, section 34(B))

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and an update from the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

4. The law allows councils to collect council tax arrears from someone’s pay via an AOE. There can be two AOEs in place at once. The amount of each deduction is set in the regulations.
5. In 2012 Ms X received too much housing benefit and council tax support. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) withdrew prosecution proceedings but Ms X still has to repay the overpayments. Ms X says the Council is targeting her because she was acquitted in 2012.
6. The Council has been collecting council tax arrears through AOEs. Ms X says the deductions started in 2016 and are causing hardship and affecting her well-being. She recently complained to the Council that not all the deductions have been credited to her account.
7. The Council told Ms X it can collect arrears by using an AOE. It explained she was not acquitted in 2012 but the DWP decided not to continue with the prosecution. In 2023, at the request of Ms X, it refunded £707 because Ms X said she was in hardship. The Council contacted Ms X’s employer and obtained a list of all the deductions. The Council checked and confirmed that all the deductions have been credited to Ms X’s council tax account. The Council invited Ms X to provide any evidence she has which shows this is not correct. The Council told me Ms X has not provided any such evidence. In February 2024 the Council told Ms X that she owes council tax of £5164 and it was going to ask her employer for more deductions.
8. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Councill. There was one occasion in 2016 when there were three AOEs in place. But, the Council cancelled the third one before any deductions were made. This does not need an investigation and occurred too long ago. I appreciate the deductions may be causing stress but the law allows councils to use AOEs so the Council is not doing anything wrong.
9. In addition, the Council acted appropriately by refunding money when Ms X explained she was in hardship; it also contacted her employer to check the deductions. It is not our role to check the accounts but, if Ms X has proof of deductions that the Council has not applied to her account, then the Council has invited her to send that evidence to officers. It is still open to Ms X to do this. There is nothing to suggest the Council is targeting Ms X and it is correct that regardless of the lack of prosecution, Ms X is still required to repay the overpayments and any other arrears she may have accrued since then.

Back to top

Final decision

10. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman