The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about equipment a council occupational therapist placed in the complainant’s parents’ home. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. It is not unreasonable to expect the complainant to take the matter to court.
The complaint
The complainant, Ms B, complained that the Council’s occupational therapist failed to ensure her mother could safely use equipment before putting it in place. Her mother fell and broke her wrist and shoulder. Ms B also complained of inaccuracies in the Council’s response to her complaint and that the Council failed to treat the incident with the seriousness and timeliness it warranted.
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 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 considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
What happened to Ms B’s mother must have been very distressing for her and her family. But, where someone could get a resolution of their complaint from another body, we expect people to use that route. Sometimes it is more appropriate for people to use the courts rather than using our service. It is not our role to decide whether a council is responsible for injuries a person has suffered and other consequences or award compensation. This is for the Council’s insurers and ultimately for the courts. The courts are for people where this is one of their primary goals. In this case it is not unreasonable to expect the complainant to take the matter to court for a ruling on the key issue of whether the Council is responsible for what happened and to seek a remedy.
We will not investigate a complaint about the way the Council has dealt with the matter when we are not investigating the substantive issue leading to the complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms B’s complaint because it is not unreasonable to expect her to take the matter to court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman