Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with a building control matter. This is because it is unlikely we could achieve a worthwhile outcome for the complainant.

The complaint

1. Mrs X has complained about the Council’s building control service. The Council’s building control service was used during the construction of an extension of a property Mrs X has since purchased. The Council issued a completion certificate. However, Mrs X has since discovered problems with the work.

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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:

• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• 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 Mrs X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Most building work will require building regulation approval. The regulations will set the standards for design, construction and ensure the health and safety of the people living in or around the building. While the Council will normally visit the site at various stages of the build, it does not act as a clerk of works or a site manager and the responsibility for compliance with the regulations rests with the building owners and builders. The council’s role is to maintain the building standards for the public in general rather than protect the private interests of an individual.
6. Mrs X says the completion certificate was issued in error after being requested by the previous owner of her home. Mrs X says the Council did not carry out proper inspections before issuing the certificate and the extension does not comply with building regulations. Mrs X says the Council should be responsible for the cost of the remedial works.
7. Caselaw has established that where a council has issued a completion certificate and the work is later found to be substandard, liability for any defects rests with those that commission the work and those that carry it out. We therefore cannot hold the Council responsible for substandard work by the builder and it is unlikely we could achieve a worthwhile outcome for Mrs X by investigating her complaint.
8. Mrs X says she would not have proceeded with the purchase of the property had she known about the problems with the extension. However, we would expect that a person purchasing a property would have a full survey carried out before completing the purchase. If a defect is discovered in work completed before the sale, we would expect the building owner to have a remedy against either the person who carried out the survey or the previous owner.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is unlikely an investigation would achieve a worthwhile outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman