Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about a letter sent to her by a Council contractor. This is because the contractor was not carrying out an administrative function on behalf of the Council when writing to Mrs X.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about a letter sent to her by a Council contractor which she says contains threats of legal action. Mrs X says her complaint about this was not dealt with properly by the Council.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate complaints about actions which are not the administrative function of a council. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(1) as amended).

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. I cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint. The letter sent to Mrs X was in relation to the contractor attempting to protect its business interests. It was therefore not carrying out an administrative function on behalf of the Council in sending the letter.
7. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

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Final decision

8. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the contractor was not carrying out an administrative function of the Council when writing to her.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman