Birmingham City Council (25 026 047)
Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 02 Jul 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about council tax matters. This is because the complaint is late and there are no good reasons for this. Mr X could have appealed to a Tribunal regarding his liability.
The complaint
- Mr X says the Council has mishandled his council tax account for periods from 2016-2019. He says it has given many different amounts owing, charged for a period he was not liable, and failed to apply a student exemption and council tax support.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended).
- 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).
- The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction.
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
- We will not investigate this complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons for this. The Council replied to Mr X’s queries about liability and the amount outstanding in August 2024. Mr X complained to the Ombudsman in January 2026.
- In addition, Mr X has or had the right of appeal to the Valuation Tribunal regarding council tax liability, exemptions and council tax support. I consider it would be reasonable to expect him to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons for this. Mr X could have appealed to the Valuation Tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman