Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has not paid rent and incentive payments for three properties the complainant leased to the Council. This is because it is a late complaint.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains the Council has not paid rent and incentive payments for the period from 2011 to 2015 for three properties she leased to the Council. Ms X wants the Council to pay everything it owes her.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence. I also considered our Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

5. Ms X leased three properties to the Council. She says she is owed rent and incentive payments from 2011 to 2015.
6. Ms X received some rental payments in 2015. Ms X says she first contacted the Council about the incentive payments in 2017.
7. The Council says it did not start paying incentive payments until 2014/15 and they were not paid retrospectively. Ms X received some incentive payments after 2015.
8. The Council considered Ms X’s complaint and signposted her to us in December 2022.
9. Ms X initially contacted us in September 2023; we asked her to complete the Council’s complaints process as she had not provided evidence she had done so. She gave us evidence of the Council’s final complaint response, from 2022, in April 2024.
10. I will not start an investigation because this is a late complaint. Ms X says she is owed rent from 2011 to 2015 but she did not complain to us until 2023. I have not seen any good reason to accept a complaint about events that occurred so long ago. Ms X received some rent payments in 2015; if she thought more rent was due then it is reasonable to expect she would have pursued the matter at the time.
11. Ms X says she is owed incentive payments from 2011 to 2015 but she did not complain to us until September 2023 despite being signposted to us in late 2022; and she waited another six months before providing proof she had completed the complaints process. I have not seen any good reason to investigate a complaint that relates to matters that arose about ten years ago. In addition, given the time that has passed, it is unlikely there would be enough information available that would allow for an effective investigation.

Back to top

Final decision

12. We will not start an investigation because this is a late complaint.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman