Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about blocked drains on the street he lives. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. There is insufficient evidence of fault to justify us investigating.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council had failed to keep the drains on street he lives on clear. He said that has led to flooding outside his property and caused damage to the carpet of his car. He wants the Council to take action to prevent further flooding, such as installing different drains.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating and
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X complained to the Council in October 2021. He said he was experiencing flooding outside his home caused by leaves blocking the drains. He said he had contacted the highways service in July but it had not visited to inspect the drains.
6. The Council’s highways service visited the following month. It did not find any evidence of flooding. It jet-cleansed and unblocked the gullies. It emailed Mr X to confirm what it had done.
7. The Council’s street cleansing team visited at the start of December. It could not complete a street cleanse because some residents had left their bins outside their properties. The Council wrote to residents and asked them to return their bins to their property as quickly as possible following a collection. The Council confirmed it last completed a street cleanse at the start of February 2022.
8. We will not investigate this complaint further. The Council has taken appropriate steps to address Mr X’s complaint about flooding, therefore, there is not enough evidence of fault to justify further investigation. Mr X potentially wants the Council to change the drains. That is not something the Ombudsman can achieve.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify us investigating.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman