Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s garden waste collection service. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code about which complaints we investigate. The injustice to the complainant is not significant enough to warrant an investigation and the service has now improved. We could not therefore achieve anything more.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss X, complained about her garden waste collection service. Miss X said collections were often missed meaning she had to dispose of her own garden waste. Miss X said there were problems with setting up the direct debit to pay for the service and the Council’s complaint handling had been poor.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

4. Miss X complained to the Council in September 2021 about problems with her garden waste collection service. The Council charges £53 a year for the service. Miss X said collections were often missed and there had been problems with setting up the direct debit. Miss X said the Council had told her she would only have to pay for half of the year due to the problems with her service. But she had then been told she would still need to pay the full amount.
5. The Council sent a brief response in November 2021. This apologised for the missed collections and said they had been raised with the collection crew. The Council would monitor her collections.
6. Miss X asked the Council to escalate her complaint and it sent a final response in December 2021. It said the direct debit system had been removed and would be replaced with a new system. It could not offer a partial refund for the missed collections. But if the service was not working for Miss X it would give her a full refund. It referred Miss X to the Ombudsman.
7. Missed waste collections are frustrating and inconvenient. But we will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. This is because the injustice to Miss X is not significant enough to warrant an investigation. Councils do not have to offer a garden waste service and it offered to refund Miss X’s payment. Miss X also says the service has now improved and so we could not achieve anything more.
8. Miss X is unhappy with how the Council dealt with her complaints. But it is not a good use of our resources to investigate complaint handling as a standalone issue.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the injustice to the complainant is not significant enough to warrant an investigation. The service has now improved and we could not therefore achieve anything more.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman