The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of the complainant’s council tax account. This is because most of it has already been considered by us. The only new issue raised concerns the banding of the property. However, it is reasonable to expect the complainant to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.
The complaint
Ms X complains about various aspects of the Council’s handling of her council tax account including the decision to hold her liable, the referral to court, the sharing of her personal data for the court action and the decision to place the property in Band F.
She says all of this has caused her great distress at a time she was suffering domestic violence.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended) The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax banding.
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant which includes the Council’s responses.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code and our previous decision (20 008 093).
My assessment
For the sake of completeness, I should note that our previous decision explained that it was reasonable for Ms X to use her legal right of appeal to the valuation tribunal about the decisions made on her liability for council tax. And that she could complain to the Information Commissioner about the alleged breach of data protection as the most suitable agency.
So, we will not investigate as most of this has already been considered. The only new issue is that Ms X says her property is in the wrong band. Again, it is reasonable for her to use her legal right to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal to look in to this further. So, we will not investigate any aspect of this complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we have already considered most of it. And it is reasonable to expect her to complain to the Tribunal about the banding.
Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman