Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the failure of a management agent to make rental payments under a contract for providing temporary accommodation for Council applicants. This is a private contractual matter which has been subject to legal proceedings taken by the complainant.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained about the Council’s failure to take any action over the failure of a private management agent to pay her rent or carry out repairs under a contract which she has with them. She says the Council should intervene and make direct rent payments to her not the agency and rehouse the current tenants on whom she has served a notice to quit.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide:

further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or

we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

3. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X rented a property she owns to a property management agency which rents property to councils for use as temporary accommodation. She says she did not receive regular payments from the agency and that it did not carry out repairs required under the contract terms. In 2022 she gave notice to the agency and the tenants that she was taking proceedings to recover her property. She also notified the Council that the family who were tenants that they would need to rehouse them for vacant possession.
7. Mrs X obtained a court order for possession and rent arrears against the agency in 2023 but the property is still occupied. The Council says it offered the tenants another property in 2022 but this was refused. The tenants have been advised of their right to remain in the property until either a warrant is obtained for their eviction or they are rehoused by the Council.
8. Mrs X complained to the Council that it should rehouse the tenants now and ensure that any rental payments are made directly to her and not the agency.
9. The Council says that it has no contractual relationship with Mrs X. She has a contract with the agency and the Council has a separate contract with the agency under which it provides services for several properties from different landlords. Any failure by the agency is a contractual matter and Mrs X has already sought a remedy in the courts.
10. We cannot investigate complaints about private legal matters where there is no involvement by the Council. The Council has a duty to find alternative housing for the family in Mrs X’s property but she can only obtain possession of it by using the legal process available to landlords. The Council has no statutory housing duty to a private landlord.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate this complaint about the failure of a management agent to make rental payments under a contract for providing temporary accommodation for Council applicants. This is a private contractual matter which has been subject to legal proceedings taken by the complainant.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman