The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the complainant has paid too much council tax. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, says she has paid too much council tax and the Council owes her about £900. She wants a refund and compensation.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence. I also considered our Assessment Code and invited Ms X to comment on a draft of this decision.
My assessment
Ms X complained to the Council that the council tax letters showed she owed £5033 but she has paid £5925. The Council checked the records and found no evidence Ms X had paid too much. Instead, the Council said Ms X still owes £575 for council tax from 2017 and owes £866 for 2020. The Council invited Ms X to provide evidence she has paid £5925 or evidence she has paid the arrears from 2017. I have not seen anything to suggest Ms X provided the Council with this evidence.
The Council has apologised for a delay in responding to Ms X’s complaint and waived fees of £364.
I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council responded appropriately by checking Ms X’s account and finding nothing to suggest she has paid too much council tax. But, it invited her to provide evidence so it could reconsider the accounts. It is reasonable to expect Ms X to provide evidence to the Council if she remains of the view she has overpaid. But, in the absence of such evidence, there is nothing for the Council to reconsider or for us to investigate. If Ms X has evidence she has overpaid she can send it to the Council.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman