The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the complainant must pay council tax on a property that she had vacated. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Mrs X, complains the Council charged council tax on two homes even though one property was empty and she is a pensioner. Mrs X wants a council tax refund for the empty property.
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 Mrs X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and information from the Council’s website about council tax and empty properties. I also considered our Assessment Code and comments Mrs X made in reply to a draft of this decision.
My assessment
Mrs X bought property A. Mrs X moved out in late 2020, due to neighbour problem, and put the property up for sale. She moved into property B which she rented. Property A was sold in August 2021.
The Council charged council tax on property A until it was sold. Mrs X complained that she should not have to pay council tax on property A after she had moved. She said the property was empty and, while she has money in the bank from the sale, she needs it for living costs and to buy a new home.
The Council explained that, as the owner, she was liable to pay council tax for property A until it was sold. It explained it charges full council tax on empty properties. It warned her it would instruct bailiffs if she did not pay the arrears. The Council said it expected her to pay the arrears because she has money in the bank from the sale of the property.
I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council correctly told Mrs X she was liable for the council tax until property A was sold and that it does not provide any exemptions or discounts for empty properties. The Council charged council tax until property A was sold so there is no suggestion of fault. I appreciate Mrs X would like to use the money for other purposes but, while this is understandable, it does not remove her liability to pay the council tax. We are not an appeal body and we cannot intervene simply because the Council makes a decision that someone disagrees with.
Mrs X says the Council did not respond appropriately when she reported the neighbour problems and, if the Council had provided a better response, she would have stayed in property A until it was sold. This, however, does not alter the fact that Mrs X was liable until she sold the property and, if she thinks the Council failed to respond properly regarding the neighbour problem, then she would need to make a separate complaint about that issue.
Final decision
We will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman