Summary: We cannot investigate Miss B’s complaint that after renovating a property, Council contractors left building materials which were later used to damage her vehicle. This is because we cannot investigate complaints about the management of social housing by a council as a social landlord.

The complaint

1. Miss B complains her vehicle was damaged because Council contractors left waste material behind after renovating a Council flat. Miss B says a person used these materials to damage her car. Miss B would like the Council to reimburse the £399 she spent repairing her vehicle.

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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 the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
4. The Act 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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Miss B.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Miss B’s complaint is about the Council’s handling of renovation works to one of its properties as a social landlord. We cannot investigate complaints about the management of social housing by councils. This restriction to our powers applies to complaints about the management and maintenance of property buildings, gardens and boundary features. This restriction also applies even if the person making the complaint is not a Council tenant or leaseholder.
8. This means we cannot investigate Miss B's complaint and have no discretion to start an investigation.
9. Also, even if we had the power to investigate, we would not start an investigation.
10. Our role is to consider complaints of administrative fault. Complaints about property damage are best decided by an organisation’s insurers, and if needed, the courts. Only the courts can decide if an organisation has been negligent and so should pay damages. So, we would usually expect someone in Miss B’s position to put in a compensation claim to the Council’s insurers, and if needed, pursue the claim at court.

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Final decision

11. We cannot investigate this complaint because it is about the management of social housing by the Council as a social landlord.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman