Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s communication of Council Tax arrears and action that the Council has taken to enforce payment of arrears. This is because further investigation of the Council’s communication would not lead to another outcome or add to the Council’s response. We are unlikely to find fault with the Council’s action in enforcing payment.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains that the Council made errors managing her Council Tax account. She says she repeatedly contacted the Council to try to understand her account and made payments in good faith despite the confusion.
2. Mrs X also says the Council did not accurately assess her claim for disability-related reductions.
3. Mrs X says the Council has wrongly taken enforcement action for Council Tax arrears.
4. Mrs X complains confusion caused by the Council’s handling of her Council Tax has left her anxious about unexpected debt enforcement and was time consuming to manage, affecting her ability to manage other responsibilities.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

5. 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:

• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

6. 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

7. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
8. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

9. Mrs X had outstanding arrears at both her former and current addresses.
10. The Council allocated Mrs X’s most recent payments made to her former address. This created confusion about what amounts were owed and affected the Council’s calculation of payment instalments.
11. After several enquiries by Mrs X, the Council provided her with a clear explanation of what had occurred. It reallocated payments in line with Mrs X’s wishes, clearly detailed her outstanding arrears and offered to allow her to pay in instalments. It also asked her to confirm if these instalments were manageable.
12. I understand how the Council’s actions and communication could have been confusing and appreciate that Mrs X had to spend time obtaining a clear explanation.
13. However, the Council has now adequately explained the situation and offered to arrange a manageable payment agreement for Mrs X. I do not consider that further investigation would lead to a different outcome.
14. Mrs X also complained that the Council did not accurately assess her claim for disability-related reductions. The Council explained to Mrs X how she could claim for the disability-related deduction. If the claim has now been decided and Mrs X is dissatisfied with the Council’s handling of these applications or the outcome of the claim, she can make a new complaint about this matter. She should complain to the Council in the first instance but can return to the Ombudsman if she is unhappy once she has received its response.
15. Mrs X said the Council wrongly took enforcement action for Council Tax arrears.
16. Mrs X did not dispute that she had arrears. The Council has a statutory duty to collect Council tax. The Council was entitled to take enforcement action when Mrs X did not comply with the agreed instalment plan. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.

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Final Decision

17. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it would not lead to another outcome or add to the Council’s response and we are unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman