Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint that the Council wrongly held her liable for business rates. This is because disputes over liability for business rates are more appropriate for consideration by the magistrates’ court.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss X, complains the Council wrongly held her liable for business rates from December 2015. She says that as a result she had to file for bankruptcy as she did not have enough money to cover her expenses.

Back to top

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’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I reviewed Miss X’s complaint and the Council’s response. I shared my draft decision with Miss X and invited her comments.

Back to top

What I found

4. Miss X leased a business premises from a third party in 2013. In 2015 she began to sub-let part of the premises to a third party but she retained the rest. She remained liable for business rates for the whole of the premises as she did not apply to the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to alter the rating list and her tenant did not have exclusive rights to occupy it.
5. Miss X contacted the Council in 2017 explaining she had subdivided the premises and stating her tenant should be liable for business rates for their part of it. The Council referred the matter to the VOA and the VOA later split the premises effective from the date Miss X contacted the Council. The Council held Miss X liable for business rates before this date and she remained liable for her part of the premises until she surrendered the lease to her landlord several years later.
6. Miss X believes the Council was wrong to hold her liable for business rates from 2015. She says she ended up having to file for bankruptcy as she did not have enough money to cover her expenses. She believes the Council should return all the money she paid and transfer liability for business rates to her tenant.
7. While the Council is the body which invoices those it considers responsible for business rates it is the magistrates’ court which deals with disputes over liability. If Miss X wished to challenge its view that she was liable for business rates her remedy lay in putting her comments forward at court in defence of any action by the Council to recover the charges. We do not have the expertise to decide disputes over business rates liability and we will not therefore investigate the issue further.

Back to top

Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the magistrates’ court was better placed to decide whether Miss X was liable for business rates.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman