Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Council tax because there is no evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains as an executor that the Council incorrectly advised him about his liability for Council tax on an estate.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

5. Mr X says that he dispersed the estate of his late Mother in November 2024 after he had sold the property on 20 November. The Council sent him a bill stating that the estate was exempt from Council tax the next day.
6. The Council then issued a Council tax bill on 24 December for £637.
7. The Council says that they had not been told that probate had been granted (in December 2023). This meant that the exemption only applied until June 2024 and a bill applied for the property after that date. The Council says it only knew of the date when probate was granted in December which led to a review of the account.
8. Our role is not to ask whether an organisation could have done things better, or whether we agree or disagree with what it did. Instead, we look at whether there was fault in how it made its decisions. If we decide there was no fault in how it did so, we cannot ask whether it should have made a particular decision or say it should have reached a different outcome.
9. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether you disagree with the decision the organisation made.
10. I am satisfied that the Council’s exemption bill applied because they were unaware of any change of circumstances. Once the Council became aware of the change, they issued a new bill. These actions were not, in my opinion, fault.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is no evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman