London Borough of Lewisham (19 010 636)
Category : Benefits and tax > Housing benefit and council tax benefit
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 02 Dec 2019
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Mr X complains that the Council has not accepted his income for housing benefit and council tax support claims. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has been resolved as the Council has reviewed its decision and he still has a right of appeal to a tribunal.
The complaint
- Mr X complains that the Council has not accepted his income for housing benefit and council tax support claims.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions a council has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (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 the complainant's and Council's comments. The complainant has been given the opportunity to comment before a final decision has been made.
What I found
- Mr X submitted his accounts to the Council for his benefit claims in April 2019. He is unhappy that the Council refused to accept some expenses which made it appear that he had made a profit instead of a loss.
- Mr X complains that the Council delayed passing his appeal to a tribunal.
- The Council says that it has now reviewed the decision in his favour and he has been formally notified of this decision. Mr X can appeal against the revised decision to a tribunal if he so wishes. The Tribunal is an independent expert body and its decisions are binding on Councils. I see no reason why an appeal could not be made.
Final decision
- The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has been reviewed and he has a further right of appeal to a tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman