Summary: We will not investigate this council tax complaint because the Council has provided a satisfactory remedy.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mrs X, complains the Council failed to take her council tax payments for three years and then demanded the full amount. Mrs X wants the Council to remove the arrears and pay compensation.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mrs 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 Council suspended Mrs X’s council tax in 2021 due to a change in her circumstances. It stopped taking payments from her direct debit which remained active. The suspension should have remained in place for a short time.
5. In 2024 Mrs X contacted the Council about a council tax discount. At this point the Council realised the account had remained suspended. The Council issued a new bill and asked for monthly payments of £364 to cover the council tax from 2021. The Council invited Mrs X to get in touch if she needed to longer to pay.
6. In response to Mrs X’s complaint the Council apologised and said it had failed to lift the suspension in 2021; due to this it had not taken any payments since 2021. The Council apologised for the upset caused by receiving such a large bill.
7. The Council awarded £1040 from a hardship fund to cover the council tax for 2024/25. Mrs X had offered to pay £104 a month for the current tax; because she now has no council tax to pay for this year the Council offered to accept £104, over 16 months, as payment for the arrears. Alternatively, the Council suggested Mrs X could pay a higher amount from September to March which would clear the arrears by the end of March. The Council also made a third suggestion regarding payment of the arrears. As far as I am aware Mrs X has not accepted a payment plan and thinks the Council should waive the arrears. As part of my consideration of the complaint the Council offered to make a symbolic payment of £100.
8. The Council made an error and failed to lift the hold on the account which it applied correctly in 2021. The Council should have issued a bill in 2021 based on Mrs X’s new circumstances. The error meant Mrs X did not pay any council tax from 2021 to 2024 although she was unaware of this as she knew she had a direct debit in place. I appreciate getting such a large bill would have been distressing, as would the requested payments of £364.
9. However, despite the error, I will not investigate the complaint because the Council has provided a satisfactory remedy. It has arranged for the current council tax to be waived (via discretionary support) which means Mrs X does not have to pay £1040 which she would have paid were it not for the error. The Council has offered several payment options which appear to be in line with what Mrs X would have paid each month were it not for the error. I appreciate Mrs X thinks the Council should waive the arrears but there is no requirement for the Council to do this; it has, however, offered a proportionate payment plan and Mrs X has benefited from council services since 2021. I have not seen anything to suggest Mrs X has suffered a financial loss and the Council will make a symbolic payment of £100 in recognition of the upset caused to Mrs X.
10. I acknowledge Mrs X remains dissatisfied and says the Council has treated her badly. However, the Council’s remedy reflects our guidance and means there is not enough remaining injustice to require an investigation. It is open to Mrs X to contact the Council regarding a payment plan.

Back to top

Final decision

11. We will not investigate this complaint because the Council has offered a satisfactory remedy.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman