Dartford Borough Council (25 023 785)
Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 02 Sep 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about council tax. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to justify investigation.
The complaint
- Ms X complains the Council unfairly took enforcement action regarding council tax arrears. She said she paid the council tax due.
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 not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating (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 also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Ms X complained to the Council regarding the matters in paragraph 1.
- The Council set out the council tax instalments due and the payments Ms X paid. It said she had not paid the full amount. The shortfall led to it issuing reminders and then a summons. The Council obtained a Liability Order in court and passed the account to its enforcement agent. The Council advised Ms X to contact the enforcement agent to make an arrangement.
- We will not investigate this complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to warrant investigation. Ms X’s payments made were not in line with the instalments. The Council was entitled to take enforcement action.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to warrant investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman