London Borough of Havering (19 014 050)
Category : Housing > Managing council tenancies
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 22 Jan 2020
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about a refund to the complainant’s rent account. This is because the Ombudsman has no power to investigate a council when it is acting as a landlord.
The complaint
- The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, says the Council has not given the correct refund after he identified his rent has wrongly included a charge for cable TV. He also complains of rudeness and questions the accuracy of his rent account.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- We cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I read the complaint and the Council’s response. I invited Mr X to comment on a draft of this decision.
What I found
What happened
- Mr X signed a council tenancy in 2003. Since 2003 his home has never had cable TV.
- In 2019 Mr X realised his rent included a charge for cable TV and had done so since the start of the tenancy. The Council provided a refund of £310. It said Mr X was not due any more money because, for some periods, the TV charge was covered by housing benefit.
- Mr X says he is due a refund of about £1200. He disputes the amount paid by housing benefit is as much as the Council says. Mr X also says officers have been rude when he has queried this issue and he doubts the accuracy of his rent account.
Assessment
- The law says the Ombudsman cannot investigate any complaint which involves the Council acting as a landlord. The Council was acting as a landlord when it calculated the amount of the refund and in relation to the handling of Mr X’s concerns and the accuracy of his rent statement. This means I have no power to investigate Mr X’s complaint.
Final decision
- I cannot start an investigation because I cannot investigate the Council when it is acting as a landlord and carrying out housing management functions.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman