Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint that an officer sent the complainant a letter accusing her of harassment. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and because the Ombudsman cannot achieve the outcome the complainant wants.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mrs X, says the Council sent her a letter accusing her of harassment when it had no evidence to support the allegation. Mrs X wants the officer moved to another role.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

3. We cannot investigate a complaint if it is about a personnel issue. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5a, paragraph 4, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and the Council’s response. I considered the letter the Council sent to Mrs X and comments Mrs X made in response to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

5. Mrs X is a landlord. Mrs X started the process of evicting a tenant. Mrs X says the tenant engaged in criminal behaviour and benefit fraud. She says he made death threats against her and was interviewed by police. She says he stalked her and her family.
6. The tenant visited the Council’s housing advice service. Following the visit the Council wrote to Mrs X. The title of the letter included the word ‘harassment’. In the body of the letter the Council said it had been told Mrs X had been in frequent contact with the tenant, sending emails and texts asking him to leave. The letter also said the Council had explained the eviction process. As examples, the letter said that only bailiffs can evict a tenant and that the tenant must be ready to leave when bailiffs arrive.
7. Mrs X complained. She said the letter amounted to harassment and she provided information about the tenant’s behaviour. She said the Council had no evidence on which to base its accusations. The officer then sent Mrs X an email explaining that she had written the first letter based on information provided by the tenant. The officer apologised for any confusion and said she was unaware of the allegations about the tenant’s behaviour. She said the information provided by Mrs X would be vital if the tenant made a homelessness application.
8. The Council also said it was not making false accusations but informing Mrs X of issues bought to its attention. It said that when someone asks for advice the Council has a duty to explain the steps the landlord must take.
9. Mrs X is dissatisfied with the response. She says there has been an abuse of power by the Council and she wants the officer moved to a different role. She said the letter had a significant impact on her husband’s health.

Assessment

10. I will not start an investigation for the following reasons.
11. There is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. It might have been better if the title line had not included the word ‘harassment’ – that said, it is possible the officer was just referring to the issues raised by the tenant. However, the Council did not accuse Mrs X of harassment or ask her to take any action or to stop doing anything. The letter merely said that the tenant had reported receiving many texts and emails and it then listed some of the steps the landlord and tenant must take during the eviction process. In addition, within two days the officer had explained she was reporting what the tenant had said and was now aware of the problems about the tenant. Mrs X feels aggrieved but the letter is not an example of fault that requires an investigation by the Ombudsman. The letter was very general with no specific allegations about Mrs X’s conduct.
12. I also will not start an investigation because I cannot achieve the outcome Mrs X would like. Mrs X wants the officer who wrote the letter to be moved to another role. However, I cannot intervene in personnel matters and I have no power to get her moved to a different role.

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Final decision

13. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and because I cannot achieve the outcome the complainant wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman