Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council (20 010 439)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Mr X complained about the Council’s breach of a private lease agreement when it carried out unsatisfactory repairs to a flat which he leased to it. We should not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because it relates to matters outside the normal 12-month period for receiving complaints. It was reasonable for Mr X to challenge the Council for breaching his private contract at the time, in the courts.
The complaint
- Mr X leased his one of his properties to the Council for four years. When the property was returned at the end of the lease in 2019 he says it was not repaired or decorated to a standard required by the contract. He says he lost income re-letting the property because the Council would not carry out further work.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
- The law 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 have considered all the information which Mr X submitted with his complaint. Mr X has been given an opportunity to comment on a draft copy of my decision.
What I found
- Mr X says he was unable to re-let his property to new tenants following the Council’s previous lease of it which led to repairs and decoration work being necessary.
- The Council told him that it carried out the repairs which the terms of the contract required. It also completed some repairs which were his responsibility and redecorated the property as a gesture of goodwill. Mr X says the decoration was poor quality and required additional work as a result. He could not let the property whilst the redecoration and other repairs were required.
- The Council repaired the property and the lease ended in 2019. It was more than 12 months before Mr X complained to us. We will not exercise discretion to investigate because even had it been received in time, the complaint concerns a private contractual agreement with the Council. If Mr X believed the contract terms were breached, he could have taken legal action, in the courts if necessary. The Ombudsman cannot determine legal claims about breaches of contract.
Final decision
- We should not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because it relates to matters outside the normal 12-month period for receiving complaints. It was reasonable for Mr X to challenge the Council for breaching his private contract at the time in the courts.
Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman