Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s alleged failure to communicate with Mr X before applying enforcement fees to an outstanding council tax debt. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council applied charges to his council tax debt without informing him first and did not communicate when he wanted to set up a payment plan or find out how much he owed.

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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 or continue 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))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X complained to the Council after an enforcement agent visited his property and left a letter showing Mr X’s personal details in a communal area. He also complained about an additional enforcement fee that was added to his outstanding council tax debt.
6. The Council investigated and liaised with the enforcement agency. The Council explained that after it referred Mr X’s council tax debt to the agency, Mr X had spoke to the enforcement agency and agreed to make payments each month for a specific amount. The enforcement agency had explained the terms and conditions of the payment arrangement but Mr X failed to keep to the payment plan. This caused an enforcement agent to visit Mr X’s property with the intention of collecting the full outstanding balance. When Mr X was not at home, the agent left the details of the visit in a letter on a communal door and applied an enforcement fee to the outstanding debt. The Council said the agent behaved in line with the correct protocol and did not uphold Mr X’s complaint.
7. Mr X remains unhappy with the situation and wants us to find the Council at fault. When the Council referred the debt to the enforcement agency, it became the agency’s responsibility to collect the outstanding council tax Mr X owes the Council. The evidence shows the enforcement agency took recovery action once Mr X did not make his payments in line with the agreed payment arrangement. It is unlikely an investigation would find fault in this. As the debt is still with the agency, it is open to Mr X to discuss another payment arrangement if he remains unhappy with the situation.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman