Summary: the Council delayed replacing Mr B’s garden waste bin and failed to keep him up-to-date with what was happening. An apology and payment to Mr B is satisfactory remedy.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr B, complained the Council delayed replacing his garden waste bin and failed to keep him up-to-date with what was happening.
2. Mr B says as a result he was without garden waste collections for more than two months and had to go to time and trouble to pursue his complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’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

5. As part of the investigation, I have:
• considered the complaint and Mr B's comments;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided.
6. Mr B and the organisation had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Background

7. Mr B’s garden waste bin was damaged during a waste collection on 18 August 2022. The Council told Mr B it would deliver a replacement bin on 5 September, providing there were no issues on the day. However, the Council did not receive a delivery of bins from the manufacturer and therefore could not provide the bin on 5 September.
8. Mr B contacted the Council on 6 September to raise concerns as he had not received a new bin. The Council apologised and told Mr B it was waiting for new stock to arrive and hoped his replacement bin would be delivered on or before 3 October.
9. Mr B contacted the Council again on 27 October as he was still waiting for the replacement bin. Mr B raised concerns because he said he had spoken to an officer recently who had said the bin would be delivered on 25 October.
10. The Council provided Mr B with a new bin at the end of October.

Analysis

11. Mr B says the Council delayed replacing his garden waste bin and kept providing him with dates for delivery which it did not keep and left him to chase for updates. The Council accepts it had difficulty replacing Mr B’s garden bin due to problems with the manufacturer delivering bins. The Council accepts this means on occasion it told Mr B it would deliver the bin on a specific date but was then not able to do that. The Council also accepts it could have contacted Mr B to personally advise him of the difficulties it was experiencing with obtaining a new bin.
12. I understand the difficulties in this case were largely outside the Council’s control given it was dependent on the manufacturer providing the replacement bin. However, the Council remains responsible for ensuring Mr B had a new bin and I am concerned the Council failed to manage Mr B’s expectations by explaining to him the difficulty it was having with securing a new bin and instead leaving him to chase for updates. Delay providing the bin and failure to keep Mr B up-to-date is fault. The Council has accepted that and offered an apology and £30 to reflect Mr B’s time and trouble. I consider that a reasonable outcome for the complaint, taking into account the amount of time Mr B was without a garden waste collection. I therefore do not intend to pursue the matter further.

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Agreed action

13. Within one month of my decision the Council should:
• apologise to Mr B; and
• pay him £30.

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Final decision

14. I have completed my investigation and uphold the complaint.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman