Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about highway repair because the court is better placed to consider the complaint, and it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to use his right to go to court about the matter.

The complaint

1. Mr Y complained the Council wrongly charged him over £2,000 for repairs to the public footpath outside his home following building works in 2024. He has also complained about how the Council responded to his complaint.
2. Mr y says he has been charged over £2,000 he does not believe he owes and he feels the issue is unfair.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. 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 there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information Mr Y and the Council provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr Y complained to the Council after he was told he would need to pay for the replacement of paving slabs outside his property after building work in 2024, which the Council says damaged the pavement. Mr Y disputes the charges because he says the paving slabs were already cracked and damaged.
7. Under s133 Highways Act 1980, Council can recover costs of repairs to the highway from those who cause damage to it. Where a person disputes their liability for the costs, it is for that person to dispute this through the courts when they receive an invoice for the costs. We cannot decide liability in such situations, where the courts can.
8. As the courts can decide liability where we cannot and there is a right to dispute such charges in court, it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to use this right and approach the court. This is particularly as the court is better placed to consider the complaint as it can decide whether Mr Y owes the amount or not, where we cannot decide this. We will therefore not investigate this complaint.
9. As we are not investigating the substantive issue, it is not a good use of public funds to investigate how the Council responded to Mr Y’s complaint. We will not investigate.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because the court is better placed to consider the complaint, and it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to use his right to go to court about the matter.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman