Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council damaged her bin during a collection and that she had to pay for a replacement. This is because the injustice claimed is not significant enough to warrant our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council damaged her waste bin during a collection. Mrs X said this meant she had to pay for a replacement bin.
2. Mrs X said the matter caused her frustration.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because Mrs X’s claimed injustice is that she had to pay £40 to replace the bin. This is not a significant enough injustice to warrant an investigation by the Ombudsman. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the claimed injustice is not significant enough to warrant our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman