Lincolnshire County Council (20 010 203)
Category : Transport and highways > Highway repair and maintenance
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 11 Feb 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Councils refusal to pay compensation for pot hole damage to her car. This is because Mrs X can reasonably take court action for the compensation she seeks.
The complaint
- Mrs X complains the Council has refused to pay for repairs to her car after it was damaged by a pot hole.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The law 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I have considered what Mrs X said in her complaint and I have sent her my draft decision on it for her comments.
What I found
- Mrs X says she hit a pothole on an unlit road and had to pay for a new wheel and trye. Mrs X has asked the Council to pay for repairs but it has refused. The Council told Mrs X there were no safety issues when it last inspected the road.
Analysis
- We cannot determine if the Council is legally liable for the damage to Mrs X’s car or if compensation should be paid. Only the courts can do this. There is a low-cost simple procedure open to anyone to make a money claim in the courts or Mrs X could ask a ‘no win no fee’ solicitor to help.
- For these reasons it is reasonable to expect Mrs X to resort to court action for the compensation she seeks. The complaint is therefore not within our remit and we will not investigate.
Final decision
- My decision is we will not investigate this complaint. This is because it is reasonable to expect Mrs X to take court action for the compensation she seeks.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman