The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the lack of consultation to changes to the trucks which collect the complainant’s recycling and missed collections. Complaints about events occurring more than 12 months ago are late and we have seen no reason why Mrs X could not have contacted us much sooner. And we do not consider Mrs X has suffered a significant personal injustice from intermittent missed recycling collections which are collected the following day.
The complaint
Mrs X complains the Council did not consult residents about changes to refuse trucks which has impacted the service Mrs X and her neighbours receive.
She also complains the Council failed to respond or follow up her concerns without her chasing them for a response.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mrs X.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mrs X complains the Council failed to consult her or her neighbours before changing its refuse trucks She says the new vehicles have difficulty accessing her road. Mrs X also says the Council has installed bollards in the road resulting in less access and making the situation worse.
In response to my enquiries, Mrs X confirms she has been complaining since 2022 about missed recycling collections. The Council sent a final response in 2023 upholding her complaint and offering a small payment for the time and trouble Mrs X has experienced in pursuing her complaint.
The law says a complaint must be made to the Ombudsman within 12 months of the personal becoming aware of the problem. There is no reason why Mrs X could not have come to us sooner with her complaint about missed collections before September 2023.
Mrs X confirms bins are occasionally missed but are collected the next day.
While this is undoubtedly frustrating, I do not consider these intermittent missed collections from September 2023 onwards and delays in responding to correspondence has caused a significant personal injustice.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because: The complaint about events occurring before September 2023 are late and we have seen no reason why she could not have contacted us much sooner.
We do not consider Mrs X has suffered significant personal injustice which warrants an investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman