Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s actions in relation to alleged encroachment. This is because we cannot achieve a worthwhile outcome.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council accused him of encroaching onto Council land. It had said, if his fence was not moved, it would instruct its own contractor to carry out the work and take legal action against him. He said this had caused him ongoing anxiety and he was worried the unresolved dispute may affect the value of his property. He wants the Council to withdraw its encroachment allegation.

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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 there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X purchased some land from the Council to extend his garden. From 2021 onwards, the Council accused Mr X of encroaching on its own land. The Council says Mr X’s boundary fence, and that of some of his neighbours, is not in the position indicated by the legal title. Mr X says the fence was in its current position prior to him buying the land. He also says he has had been in possession of the land for more than 26 years so could claim adverse possession.
6. We cannot resolve the question of where the boundary lies as that is a legal matter. And we cannot ask the Council not to enforce what it considers is encroachment on its land. Therefore, we will not investigate the complaint further as there is nothing worthwhile we could achieve by doing so.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we could not achieve a worthwhile outcome by doing so.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman