Summary: We will not investigate this council tax complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault and injustice.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains the Council did not issue a revised council tax bill after she reported that her Council Tax Support (CTS) had ended. She wants the Council to waive any council tax it did not explain on a revised bill.

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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 an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained.

(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 Ms X and the Council. This includes correspondence about the council tax. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. In September Ms X reported that her CTS had stopped. The Council says it issued a revised bill in late September.
5. Ms X complained because she had not received a revised bill. She subsequently received two reminders but says she did not get a reply to her complaint.
6. In December the Council told Ms X she needed to pay £116 to bring her account up to date. It confirmed it would waive £32 in council tax from the previous tax year.
7. The Council issued a Final Notice in February. This was because Ms X had been paying council tax but not the amount stated on the revised bill.
8. The Council says Ms X now does not owe any council tax for 2023/24.
9. Ms X says she received her new bill for 2024/25 but the Council did not send any payment slips. The Council stopped automatically sending payment slips this year but the council tax bill explains people can ask for them if needed. The Council will arrange for some payment slips to be sent to Ms X.
10. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council issued a new bill after Ms X reported the change in her circumstances. I do not know why Ms X did not get the bill but she did receive the reminders which explained what she needed to pay. The Council also explained in December what she needed to pay to bring the account up to date.
11. I also will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of justice. I appreciate Ms X was unsure about how much she needed to pay and thinks the complaints process was inadequate; but, she does not have any arrears for 2023/24, has not incurred any costs or court action, and was sent information explaining what she needed to pay. In addition, the £32 has been waived.
12. Ms X said she had not received payment slips for her new bill. This does not need an investigation because the bill explains that slips are no longer automatically issued but people can request them if needed.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault and injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman