Summary: We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to disclose the background of a tenant it recommended to a private sector landlord. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about the Council’s failure to disclose the background of a tenant recommended to him in 2021. He says the tenant subsequently stopped paying rent and restricted access of the landlord to view their own property. He says she owes in excess of £7,000 in rent arrears.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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)
4. The Information Commissioner's Office considers complaints about freedom of information. Its decision notices may be appealed to the First Tier Tribunal (Information Rights). So, where we receive complaints about freedom of information, we normally consider it reasonable to expect the person to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner.

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. Mr X says he agreed to accept a tenant recommended by the Council in 2021 on a 2-year assured shorthold tenancy with the Council making direct housing benefit payments to him as landlord. When the tenancy ended in 2023 he signed a new tenancy agreement directly with the tenant and the Council was no longer able to pay the rental direct because she claimed universal credit which has a separate housing allowance administered by the Department for Work and Pensions.
8. Mr X says the tenant ceased to pay the rent regularly as she was now responsible for direct payment to the landlord form her benefit. He says he subsequently discovered that she was from a background of gang violence which he says is a threat to his property and which he would not have agreed a tenancy for had the Council informed him in 2021.
9. He made a complaint to the Council in 2025 about the tenant and it told him that it could not disclose her background without consent due to restrictions under the General Data Protection Regulations. It reminded him that it had no involvement with the tenancy since 2023 when he arranged a new shorthold and that this was a civil matter between a landlord and tenant.
10. Mr X signed the new private assured tenancy in 2023 and it was his role as landlord to be satisfied that his tenant was suitable. There are no tenancy breach issues mentioned from the previous tenancy and it appears that the arrears only began after 2023 when the tenant claimed universal credit and was responsible for her own rental payments from her benefit.
11. We will not investigate this complaint which relates to matters which took place more than 12 months before Mr X complained to us. The time for receiving complaints is from when someone became aware of the matter they wish to complain about, not when they complained to the Council or it issued its final response. We would expect someone to complain to us within a year, even if they were dissatisfied with the time the complaints procedure was taking.
12. Mr X has made a complaint to the Council within the past 12 months about information disclosure. He could make a formal subject access request to the Council and if unsuccessful complain to the office of the Information Commissioner which is the body responsible for information access disputes.

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Final decision

13. We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to disclose the background of a tenant it recommended to a private sector landlord. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman