Summary: Mr X complains about the delay by the Council in paying housing benefit directly to him. He also says he was misadvised about the reimbursement of rent arrears. The Ombudsman found there was delay by the Council in processing the payment. The Council has offered a financial remedy for the injustice this caused Mr X.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains that, the Council delayed paying housing benefit to him as landlord even though the tenant had not paid rent since December 2018. He also complains that the Council told him it would make a payment to cover the rent arrears but now says it will not do so.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered all the information provided by Mr X and discussed the complaint with him. I made enquiries of the Council and considered its response.
5. I gave Mr X and the Council a copy of my draft decision and invited their comments. I considered the comments I received

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What I found

6. Mr X telephoned the Council on 5 March 2019 to notify them that his tenant was in rent arrears. He asked the Council to pay the housing benefit directly to him. The Council suspended the tenant’s housing benefit to stop any future payments being made whilst it sought evidence to confirm the rent arrears. The Council asked Mr X to confirm in writing the outstanding arrears, the period the arrears related to and his bank account details.
7. Mr X telephoned the Council again on 13 March 2019 and confirmed the amount of rent arrears. The Council advised Mr X that he needed to provide proof of the arrears in writing. Mr X sent the information by email on the same day, however he did not provide his bank details. Mr X told the Council that he preferred communication via email and letter.
8. On 19 March 2019 the Council wrote to Mr X and asked him to confirm his bank details. The Council also sent a letter to the tenant requesting proof of rental payments he had made.
9. Mr X states that on 5 March 2019 and 13 March 2019 he was advised that once the Council had investigated the rent arrears, “any money that was owed, specifically all arrears would be put into [his] account”.
10. On 22 May 2019 Mr X contacted the Council for an update. He said he had not received the letter sent to him on 19 March 2019. The Council established that it had sent the letter to the correct address but had addressed it to Mr X’s late father. Mr X was advised that “where a tenant has failed to pay rent, the case would need to be investigated and if there were arrears, housing benefit would be paid to the landlord going forward and not what had already been paid to the customer”. On the same day the Council reissued the letter asking Mr X to confirm his bank details, but still addressed it in Mr X’s later father’s name
11. On 24 May 2019 Mr X complained to the Council. He said that he was initially told by two different officers that once the arrears had been investigated, any benefit owing, including all arrears would be reimbursed by the Council. However, now the Council said that housing benefit cannot be paid again for the same period already paid and only future payments would be made. Mr X complained that he had been misadvised and this had caused him stress and uncertainty. Mr X also told the Council that the letters addressed to his late father had caused considerable distress to his mother.
12. The Council responded to Mr X’s complaint on 7 June 2019. The Council said that it could not listen to the telephone conversations of 5 March 2019 and 13 March 2019 as the recordings were no longer available. The Council said that its housing benefit staff were experienced in the processing of housing benefit and it was difficult to believe that Mr X was advised that housing benefit would be paid again, if it had already been paid for the same period to the tenant. The Council acknowledged that it was at fault for incorrectly addressing the letters to Mr X’s later father and apologised for the distress this caused Mr X and his mother.
13. On 11 July 2019 the Council received confirmation of Mr X’s bank details. On 24 July 2019, the Council made a payment to Mr X’s bank account, for housing benefit covering the period 11 March 2019 to 7 July 2019.

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Analysis

14. When we investigate complaints against councils we do so impartially. We consider information provided by complainants and councils and we aim to make robust, evidence-based decisions.
15. The Council says that any housing benefit payments already paid to Mr X’s tenant cannot be reimbursed. This is correct. However, Mr X states that this was not the advice he was given on 5 March 2019 and 13 March 2019. He says he was misadvised and told that once the case had been investigated, all arrears including payments already made would be paid to Mr X. The Council disagrees.
16. There is a conflict of evidence on this point. The Council says that Mr X’s case is not a unique situation and the officers that spoke with Mr X on 5 March 2019 and 13 March 2019 were very experienced. The Council says it is confident that the officers would have relayed the correct information and advice to Mr X. The Council no longer holds a record of the telephone conversations. I recognise that Mr X feels he was misadvised, however in the absence of evidence to show what happened, I cannot conclude the Council was at fault.
17. The Council suspended housing benefit payments on 5 March 2019. It established that the tenant had paid his rent up until 10 March 2019. Therefore, it would pay Mr X housing benefit from 11 March 2019. The Council required confirmation of Mr X’s bank details before it could process the payment, however the letters were incorrectly addressed to Mr X’s late father. This fault meant that Mr X was not aware of the information he needed to provide which resulted in a delay by the Council in making the payment to Mr X. The Council made the payment on 24 July 2019. The delay is further fault.
18. In response to the Ombudsman’s enquires the Council recognised the undue distress this caused Mr X and has agreed to pay him £500. I am satisfied that this remedies the injustice caused to Mr X.
19. The Council has already apologised to Mr X for the distress caused to Mr X and his mother caused by the letters (see paragraph 11). I am satisfied with this.

Agreed action

20. In recognition of the injustice to Mr X, within four weeks of the final decision the Council will:

• Send a further written apology to Mr X for the faults I have found;
• Pay Mr X £500 in recognition of the injustice caused.

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Final decision

21. I have found fault in the actions of the Council and I have recommended a remedy for the injustice caused to Mr X. I have completed my investigation on this basis.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman