Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with Mr X’s concerns about the safety of the building where he owns a flat. This is because the Council is not responsible for carrying out repairs or for the building itself and so Mr X has not been caused an injustice as a result of the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to take action to deal with a dangerous building in which he owns a flat. Mr X says his flat has been damaged as a result of water coming from a neighbouring property and the building itself is at risk of collapse.
2. Mr X says the Council’s actions have caused him significant distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
4. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

My assessment

7. The freeholder of the building where Mr X lives is responsible for maintaining the building and making it safe. Individual leaseholders will also be responsible for maintaining their properties under the terms of their lease.
8. If the Council was to find problems with a building it would write to the property owner and require them to carry out any necessary repairs. The Council is not responsible for carrying out the repairs nor is it responsible for the building itself.
9. Therefore, the actions of the Council have not caused Mr X an injustice and we will not investigate this complaint. If Mr X is concerned about the condition of the building he should discuss this with the freeholder. Mr X may also be able to take action against his neighbour for damage caused to his property as a result of any leaks or the general poor state of the neighbour’s property.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the actions of the Council have not caused him an injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman