Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint that the Council wrongly advised he could build a new garage as ‘permitted development’ without the need for planning permission. This is because the complaint is late.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council wrongly advised he could build a garage without the need for planning permission. Having done so, Mr X says the Council conceded its advice was incorrect. Mr X applied for planning permission to regularise the development but the Council refused his application.

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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 late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I reviewed Mr X’s complaint, shared my draft decision with him and invited his comments.

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What I found

5. Mr X spoke to the Council to discuss building a new garage in his garden in 2015. He says the Council confirmed he could build the garage under ‘permitted development’, meaning he did not require planning permission. He completed the work in 2016 and a neighbour contacted the Council to complain. It then decided the work was not permitted development and did require planning permission.
6. Mr X applied for planning permission to regularise the development but the Council refused his application. Mr X complains he cannot now use the garage as intended and has wasted a large amount of money. He would like the Council to reconsider the matter or provide compensation.
7. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. Mr X became aware of the matter in 2016 and did not complain to the Ombudsman about it until September 2019. His complaint is therefore more than two years late.
8. While the Ombudsman has discretion to investigate late complaints I have seen nothing to suggest it would not have been reasonable for Mr X to raise this matter with us at the time. I will not therefore exercise our discretion in this case.

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Final decision

9. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint is late and I have seen no good reasons to exercise our discretion to investigate it.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman