Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failures to ensure timely repairs to the highway or respond to the complainant. The Council has apologised for the poor level of service the complainant has received. It has also started the repairs. We do not consider that further investigation will lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. The complainant, I shall call Mr X says the Council has:
• failed to respond to him in a timely manner
• moved completion dates for necessary works
• made false promises

He wants the work completed in the agreed timeframe.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. In 2021 Mr X reported flooding on a stretch of road caused by damaged drains and a defect in the footpath which he says causes surface water to drain towards his home. He also reported the flooding was damaging his property.
6. After five months Mr X chased the Council as he had not received a response. The Council apologised to Mr X for the delay and arranged to clean the gullies and look at a footway scheme to correct the problem.
7. Mr X chased the Council again the following month. In January, the Council confirmed it had scheduled work on the footpath to be completed by the end of February 2022.
8. As there was not action, Mr X chased the Council again. At the end of March, the Council confirmed a specialist contractor would clear the drain in April.
9. The Council says a gas pipe has been laid incorrectly and blocked a drain. It believes the drain is a public sewer. It told Mr X that if the local water company does not repair the drain, the Council would do so by the end of October.
10. The Council apologised to Mr X for the poor level of service it has provided.
11. Mr X has confirmed the work on the footpath is complete and the work to the drain is in progress.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. The Council has apologised for the poor service he has received. We consider this an appropriate remedy to this part of the complaint. The work to the footpath is now complete and the work on the drain is in progress. Further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman