Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about a council tax penalty charge. This is because there is an appeal right to the Valuation Tribunal and it would have been reasonable to expect Miss X to use it.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains the Council failed to consider her student status for her council tax liability despite sending it evidence. She says the Council stated she had not returned the review form it sent to confirm her student status and applied a penalty fee. Miss X says shortly after bailiffs visited her demanding payment for a penalty fee and their charges. She says enforcement action should have been paused while she was disputing it with the Council. Miss X says the situation caused her stress and anxiety. She wants the Council to issue an apology, review the amount owed and suspend all enforcement action while in dispute.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone has a right of appeal, reference or review to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax support or reduction.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Miss X received council tax exemption from 2020 as she was a full-time student. In November 2023, the Council sent Miss X a review form asking to confirm her student status. Miss X said she provided the Council with evidence she was a full-time student which entitled her to an exemption from council tax. The Council said it did not receive any evidence after issuing reminder letters to Miss X. It ended Miss X’s exemption, and it added a penalty charge to the account.
8. After the Council issued the penalty charge, Miss X provided evidence of her student status, and the Council reinstated her exemption. As Miss X missed the deadline to provide evidence, she remained liable for the penalty charge. The Council did not receive any payment from Miss X and passed the account on to enforcement agents. If Miss X disputed liability for the penalty charge, it would have been reasonable for her to have appealed to the Valuation Tribunal. Therefore, we will not investigate her complaint.
9. The Council confirmed to Miss X, her existing repayment plan for her council tax liability for 2019 would remain the same. It also told her it would pause enforcement for twenty-eight days for her to make suitable arrangements to pay the outstanding balance for the penalty charge.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is an appeal right to the Valuation Tribunal and it would have been reasonable to expect Miss X to use it.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman