London Borough of Wandsworth (26 009 902)
Category : Housing > Council house sales and leaseholders
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 22 Jul 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Ms B’s complaint about the Council’s consideration of her Right to Buy application. This is because it is reasonable for Ms B to take the Council to court.
The complaint
- Ms B complains the Council got her eligibility and qualifying period wrong when considering her Right to Buy application. Ms B says the Council wrongly disregarded her residence at her previous property which the Council says was temporary accommodation. Ms B would like the Council to correct her status as a Council tenant for this period, so she is eligible to buy her property with the higher discount.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- The Act says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Ms B.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Section 181 of the Housing Act 1985 provides a Right to Buy applicant with the right to ask the County Court to determine any question arising under Part V of the Act, apart from issues relating to a property’s valuation.
- As the law expressly provides this route for resolving such disputes, we would normally expect applicants to use it, with legal advice if necessary. There might be some costs involved, but such costs are proportionate to the costs involved with a property purchase. And, the court would provide a formal legal ruling which we are not empowered to do.
- For these reasons, I find it is reasonable to expect Ms B to pursue this matter at court. So, we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Ms B’s complaint because it is reasonable for her to take the Council to court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman