Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr A’s complaint that the Council was at fault in putting sand on the highway, which put him to the expense of having his car cleaned. This is because the injustice Mr A claims is not significant enough to justify the Ombudsman’s involvement.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I will refer to as Mr A, complains that the Council was at fault in putting sand on the highway, which put him to the expense of having his car cleaned.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have considered what Mr A has said in support of his complaint

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What I found

4. Mr A says the Council put sand on the highway after an oil spill. He complains that it did so without due care and without warning residents. The sand made his car dirty, and he was forced to have it valeted at a cost of £25. He wants the Council to refund the cost.
5. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr A’s complaint. At £25, the alleged loss caused by the Council’s actions is not so significant as to justify the Ombudsman’s involvement.

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Final decision

6. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the injustice Mr A claims the Council’s actions have caused him is not so significant as to justify our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman