Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an empty property council tax premium as it unlikely we will find fault by the Council. The Council has offered a suitable financial payment for fault it acknowledged in the way it handled certain other aspects of Mrs X’s council tax account.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about a council tax premium the Council applied to her empty property. Mrs X says the Council delayed in responded to her, did not take account of her circumstances and misled her about possibly being exempt from the council tax premium being applied. Mrs X wants an apology for how she was treated and compensation.

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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 there is not enough evidence of fault or faut causing a significant injustice, to justify investigating (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
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. We may decide not to start or continue with 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)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. In its complaint responses to Mrs X, the Council explained how it had come to adopt its policy on empty homes council tax premium, with reference to the provisions in law, and why the premium applied to her property. It explained it does have a scheme to assist those experiencing financial hardship, whereby it has discretion to reduce council tax bills, but explained why it did not consider Mrs X would be eligible for help under this scheme.
8. We will not investigate as the Council explained to Mrs X why her personal circumstances did not preclude her from paying the premium. It also advised her of how she could apply for financial assistance. I consider it is unlikely we would find fault by the Council, if we were to investigate.
9. If Mrs X considered the Council wrongly applied its policy in her case, that its decision on her liability was wrong, she had the right to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal (VT) for an adjudication on this. Similarly, had she applied for financial assistance under the Council’s discretionary policy but been refused, Mrs X would have had the right to appeal to the VT against that decision. The VT is the correct body to resolve council tax liability/entitlement to council tax reduction disputes. We are not another level of appeal and cannot make the decisions of the VT.
10. The Council acknowledged errors in other aspects of the handling of Mrs X’s council tax account, including that it had put her to some time and trouble in requesting information from her that would have made no difference to her overall council tax liability. The Council apologised for this and offered Mrs X a payment of £200.
11. We will not investigate as I consider this is a suitable remedy and it would not be in the public interest for us to take this complaint further.
12. Mrs X says she was treated in an arrogant and patronising manner by certain staff. I can see no indication of this in the information Mrs X has provided in support of her complaint. But we would not investigate this as a separate matter as it does not represent a significant injustice and, in any case, any injustice in this regard is suitably remedied by the Council’s offer of the monetary payment.
13. For these reasons, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is unlikely we will find fault in the Council refusing to disapply the council tax premium and the Council has offered a suitable remedy for other aspects of its handling of the account.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman