The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about business rates as the dispute on the account is now resolved.
The complaint
Mrs X complained the Council was pursuing her for business rates she said she did not owe. Mrs X said she cannot afford to pay and wanted to bill to be quashed.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We investigate 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 or continue an investigation if we decide there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council has told us it has awarded Small Business Rates Relief on Mrs X’s account which has left a zero balance. This is the outcome Mrs X sought and we cannot add to this. As such, we will not investigate.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the dispute has been resolved in the manner she had requested.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman