Torbay Council (22 001 590)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to remove a fallen tree and maintain land next to the complainant’s home. The Council has apologised and agreed to carry out the work. Further investigation will not lead to a different outcome.
The complaint
- The complainant, I shall call Mr C, says the Council:
- Failed to remove a fallen tree from his boundary
- Failed to maintain its land; and
- Failed to deal with his complaint in a suitable way
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mr C and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr C told the Council a tree on its property had fallen against his boundary. The Council did not remove it promptly, so Mr C removed it and complained. The Council replied that it did not consider the fallen tree urgent because it was not a danger to life and property. It also said it was sorry Mr C had to move it himself.
- The Council has now visited the site. It has apologised for the delay in dealing with his complaint. It has also given Mr C two options for work it will carry out. It has confirmed that once he confirms his preferred option the work will be completed.
- I understand Mr C is unhappy with the way the Council handled his complaint. However, the Council has apologised which is a suitable remedy. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures alone, when we are not considering the substantive issue.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are satisfied with the Council’s proposed actions and further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman