Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s decision not to provide a trade waste collection service to his business. This is because further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome, and we cannot achieve the outcome he seeks.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has refused to reinstate his business waste collection service, despite it previously agreeing to reinstate the service once he paid his outstanding arrears. This has caused difficulties for his business because it has no waste collection service in place. Mr X believes the Council misled him and wants it to reinstate the service and provide clearer information about the consequences of non-payment.

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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:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint, or

there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation. (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.

My Assessment

5. The Council stopped collecting Mr X’s business waste after his account fell into arrears. Mr X paid the arrears, but the Council refused to restart the service because of the previous non-payment history.
6. Mr X disputed this decision on the basis he had received an email from a Council officer stating they would reinstate the service if he cleared the outstanding debt.
7. The Council did not dispute sending the email. However, it said it sent a further email shortly afterwards explaining it would not reinstate the service. The Council said it had repeatedly pursued payment of outstanding invoices over several months without receiving a response from the business and considered there to be a risk of future non-payment. This is a decision it was entitled to make.
8. Councils do not have a legal duty to collect trade waste in the same way they must collect household waste. Businesses are responsible for arranging the disposal of their waste through an authorised waste carrier. Where a council provides a trade waste collection service, it does so in a commercial capacity and may decide the terms on which it offers that service.
9. Although the Council did not uphold Mr X’s complaint, it identified lessons and introduced procedural changes. It said it now requires senior management approval before reinstating suspended commercial waste services and before officers offer to restart commercial waste contracts. The Council also signposted Mr X to alternative commercial waste providers operating in the area.
10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome as we cannot achieve the outcome he seeks. We have no power to direct the Council to provide or reinstate a trade waste collection service for his business.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint, because further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome and we cannot achieve the outcome he seeks.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman