Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about council tax recovery action. We cannot investigate part of the complaint as it relates to court proceedings, and the law does not allow us to consider court action. Of the parts remaining the Council has investigated and we are satisfied with the actions the Council has taken to remedy any injustice.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council incorrectly took court action over his council tax arrears when he had offered to resolve the matter in advance. Mr X stated the process has caused him stress, anxiety and time off work. He would like the Council to update their processes to ensure the issue does not recur, and to increase their offer of compensation.

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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. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
4. 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 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 Mr X and the Council’s responses.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mr X received a council tax reminder in April 2025. The notice stated the Council may take court action if payment was not received within seven days. The Council issued a Court Summons to Mr X on 1 May 2025. On the day of the court hearing, the Council recognised the Easter Bank Holidays had not been included when calculating Mr X’s initial council tax payment. The Council withdrew recovery action and removed the associated court costs from Mr X’s account.
8. In its complaint response, the Council apologised to Mr X for relying too heavily on its automatic systems. It also apologised that a member of staff did not return Mr X’s call, and for a delay in email correspondence. Mr X stated that he had to take time off work to attend Court. In its complaint response, the Council apologised to Mr X for his time away from work and offered him £200 compensation.
9. We cannot consider the Council’s actions after it issued the court summons, in so far as Mr X was unhappy with what it did before the court proceedings. This is because that is the start of court proceedings as set out in paragraph 3.
10. In relation to the Council’s actions before it issued a summons, the Council acknowledged that it could have taken a different approach in handling Mr X’s account. We are satisfied with the actions the Council has taken in relation to this complaint. It apologised to Mr X, provided him with a detailed response about its actions and offered a suitable financial remedy in the form of a symbolic payment to remedy his injustice.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are satisfied with the actions the Council has taken and we cannot investigate part of the complaint relating to court action.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman