Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a missed waste collection. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. The injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mr B said he paid for garden waste disposal, but the Council contractor never emptied his bins. Mr B said the Council called him a liar despite his evidence and ignored his complaint. Mr B felt abused and it has impacted his mental health. Mr B wants a refund plus ten years of free garden waste collection.

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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 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, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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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. The Ombudsman appreciates that missed collections are annoying, frustrating, and inconvenient. Especially when you have paid for the service.
6. But we do not investigate all the complaints we receive. In deciding whether to investigate we need to consider various tests. These include the alleged injustice to the person complaining. We only investigate the most serious complaints.
7. When it comes to waste collections, mistakes can happen, and from time-to-time most people will have a missing collection. The Council accepts it did miss some collections, and it failed to provide Mr B with information about its investigation. It apologised for this. So, we will not investigate Mr B’s complaint, because the injustice caused is not significant enough to justify our continued involvement in the case and it is unlikely we would achieve more than the apology the Council has given.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. It is unlikely an investigation would achieve the outcome Mr B wants of a full refund and future free service. The Council has already apologised, and it is unlikely we would achieve anything more than that.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman