Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Council tax recovery action as any outstanding injustice caused to the complainant is not sufficient to warrant our further involvement.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained the Council did not notify her by email about unpaid council tax and about the way it took recovery action, passing the case to its enforcement agents (bailiffs) and adding costs to the account. Ms X wanted the debt to be reduced.

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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 any outstanding injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or further investigation would not lead to a different outcome (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 the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Arrears accrued on Ms X’s council tax account after she stopped paying instalments when she cancelled her direct debit, during a period when Ms X was out of the country caring for a sick relative. Ms X was not aware of recovery action the Council was taking on the account until she returned to the country and feels the Council ought to have contacted her by email when it received no response to the reminder letters it had sent to her address. Ms X is unhappy about legal costs and bailiff costs that were added to the account.
6. In its complaint responses, the Council explained why recovery action had been taken and that while it considered recovery procedures had been followed correctly, as a goodwill gesture, it took the account back from the bailiffs and removed the bailiff fees of £310 from the debt.
7. I recognise Ms X remains unhappy about what took place, but we will not investigate as it is unlikely we could achieve any further meaningful outcome for her or change the outcome of the complaint. As the Council has removed the bailiff fees from the account, any outstanding injustice caused to Ms X is not sufficient to justify our further involvement and, in any case, has provided the outcome she sought from her complaint, that is, for the debt to be reduced.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Ms X ’s complaint because any outstanding injustice is not sufficient to warrant our further involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman