Coventry City Council (25 022 051)
Category : Other Categories > Commercial and contracts
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 25 Jun 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of a commercial lease. This is because the courts are best placed to deal with contractual matters, and it would be reasonable for the complainant to pursue the matter in court.
The complaint
- Mr X complained the Council failed to grant a new lease to the remaining occupier of a property he had jointly leased. He said this has caused him stress and anxiety for over a year and had a negative financial impact. He would like the Council to remove his name from the lease from April 2024 and recognise the avoidable delay caused to him.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- 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 considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X had a joint lease for a commercial property with the Council. He said the Council failed to grant a new lease to the remaining occupier of the building, which caused him financial loss.
- In its complaint response, the Council told Mr X his name remained on the joint lease. The Council told Mr X there were several ways his name could be removed from the lease and suggested he seek legal advice.
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. The matter is about the implementation of a commercial lease, and the courts are best placed to consider such matters. It would be reasonable for Mr X to take legal action if he believes the Council has breached the terms of the commercial lease agreement, or if he believes fault on the Council’s part has caused him financial loss.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the courts are best placed to deal with contractual matters, and it would be reasonable for him to pursue the matter in court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman