The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a Council tax bill as the Council has remedied the matter and it has been considered by a court.
The complaint
Ms X complains that the Council has sought more Council tax payments from her than is correct and failed to explain why the bill differs from the court summons.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended) We have the power to start or end an investigation into a complaint about actions the law allows us to investigate. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), 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
Ms X says that the amount sought by the Council in the summons issued against her did not match the amount sought later by the Council. Ms X says that the Council has failed to explain why this happened.
The Council says that Ms X weas present when the case was considered by the magistrates. Amy dispute about that amount was therefore for the court to consider.
The Council says that that amount sought then changed due to payments being made by Ms X.
I am satisfied that the Council has provided an explanation for the amount sought and this remedies any complaint that the Council had not done so previously. Further, the Liability Orders were considered by a court and Ms X had the opportunity to comment at that point. The Ombudsman cannot question the court’s decision.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman