Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (19 011 159)
Category : Transport and highways > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 04 Mar 2020
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about delay repairing a pothole. It is unlikely he would find fault by the Council caused the complainant injustice warranting his involvement.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I refer to here as Mr B, complained the Council had not repaired a pothole outside his home. Mr B had raised the issue with the Council regularly since March 2019. In his complaint to us, he said he wanted the Council to repair the pothole
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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 an investigation if, for example, we believe any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I have considered what Mr B said in his complaint and background information provided by the Council.
What I found
- The Council has now repaired the pothole and I understand is Mr B is satisfied with this.
Final decision
- I have decided we will not investigate this complaint. While I understand Mr B wanted the Council to repair the pothole earlier, he has been caused injustice that justifies our involvement.
Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman