The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a building control matter. This is because the Council’s actions did not cause Miss X significant injustice.
The complaint
The complainant, Miss X, complains the Council took too long to issue a completion certificate for her building work, contacted her about an issue relating to the work which fell outside the scope of the Council’s building control team and failed to keep her updated.
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 effect 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 the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Miss X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We do not investigate all the complaints we receive. In deciding whether to investigate we need to consider various tests. These include the alleged injustice to the person complaining. We only investigate the most serious complaints.
I understand Miss X is frustrated by the Council’s actions but I have seen nothing to suggest they caused her significant injustice. The Council has now issued the completion certificate and its actions did not affect the outcome of the case. We will not therefore investigate the matter further.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the Council’s actions did not cause Miss X significant enough injustice to warrant investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman