Cornwall Council (19 003 076)
Category : Benefits and tax > Housing benefit and council tax benefit
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 18 Jul 2019
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Ms A complains about the way the Council dealt with her housing benefit claim. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because she appealed to a tribunal.
The complaint
- Ms A complains about the way the Council dealt with her housing benefit claim.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
- The Social Entitlement Chamber (also known as the Social Security Appeal Tribunal) is a tribunal that considers housing benefit appeals. (The Social Entitlement Chamber of the First Tier Tribunal)
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered the complainant's and Council's comments. The complainant has commented on the draft decision.
What I found
- Ms X made a claim for housing benefit in May 2017 (as she was moving to a new property). The claim was paid but only for one bedroom. Ms X argued that a further room was needed for a carer. Following correspondence, Ms X appealed against the decision in October 2017. After further evidence was received the Council awarded the extra bedroom rate in February 2018 and the benefit backdated.
- I appreciate the time and trouble Ms X experienced in seeking to dispute and appeal the Council’s decision, but., as she appealed to a tribunal, the matter is out of jurisdiction. This includes all aspects of the appeal process, such as delay etc. The complaint is also out of time as it could have been made within 12 months of the issues arising.
- The Ombudsman cannot therefore investigate this complaint.
Final decision
- The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter is out of time and was appealed to a tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman