Salford City Council (25 015 971)
Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 16 Jun 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council handled Miss X’s Council Tax account. The Council has decided to cease recovery action and waive the costs charged, which is the outcome Miss X wanted. Further investigation by us is unlikely to achieve anything more.
The complaint
- Miss X complained the Council mishandled her Council Tax account by not acting on an incomplete address, which led to missed correspondence, enforcement action, and court costs. She also complained enforcement agents acted aggressively, ignored her vulnerability, and discouraged her from seeking debt advice. Miss X said this caused distress and disruption. She wanted fees removed, enforcement stopped, and the account closed.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- When Miss X brought her complaint to us, she had also made a complaint to the Council about the recovery action taken by its Enforcement Agents against her and the other occupants of the property in relation to unpaid council tax.
- In its complaint response, the Council agreed to cease recovery action against Miss X and the other occupants and confirmed that the charges were no longer payable.
- We will not investigate this complaint because further investigation is unlikely to achieve anything more than the Council’s complaint process.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. The Council has agreed to provide the outcome she wanted and further investigation is unlikely to achieve anything more.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman