Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of a dispute about fence repairs. This is because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome and any injustice was remedied by the Council during the complaints process.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about the Council’s handling of a dispute about a fence between her and her neighbour’s property. She says the Council’s delay caused her distress and led to her relationship to break down with her neighbours.

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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:

• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or

(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 the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X says the fence between her and her neighbours was in a state of disrepair. She believed the fence was the responsibility of the Council as her neighbours were Council tenants. She says the Council did not notify her she was responsible for the upkeep of the fence in a timely manner and the delay resulted in a breakdown in the relationship with her neighbours.
6. The Council says it became aware of the broken fencing in November 2024 during an inspection of the property. The Council obtained a copy of the deeds and established Mrs X was responsible for the upkeep of the boundary. The Council did not notify Mrs X of this responsibility until August 2025 when it requested she made repairs within three weeks. The Council has since apologised for this delay and offered Mrs X £100 in recognition of the effect of its failures.
7. Mrs X complains she was not aware of her boundary responsibilities. However, as a homeowner, this information would have been available to Mrs X when she purchased the property. The Council had no duty to tell Mrs X in 2024 and it should not have been necessary for her to rely on it for this information. The Council has however admitted some fault in this instance and offered what it deems a suitable financial remedy.
8. Any investigation carried out by the Ombudsman would not achieve a different outcome and the Council’s offer is broadly in line with the Ombudsman’s published guidance.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because an investigation would not achieve a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman