The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We have decided not to investigate Mr X’s complaint about missed assisted bin collections. The Council has upheld the complaint and agreed to remedy the injustice caused by taking appropriate action.
The complaint
Mr X complained his assisted bin collections had been missed since February 2024.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X complained the Council missed his assisted waste collections since February 2024.The Council said the bins were initially not collected due to an overgrown hedge (since resolved) and a restructure of its waste collection service. It said crews had been reminded about his need for assisted collection.
Mr X said his assisted waste collection has continued to be missed since he made a complaint to the Council.
If we investigated this complaint, it is likely we would find the Council at fault because the Council has missed Mr X’s assisted collections, and this appears to be continuing to happen. This has caused Mr X frustration and uncertainty. We therefore asked the Council to consider remedying this by taking the action set out below.
Agreed Action
Within one month of the date of this decision, the Council will wite to Mr X and apologise for the frustration and uncertainty caused by the missed assisted collections. We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The organisation should consider this guidance in making the apology I have recommended in my findings.
The Council will monitor the next four collections and report back to the Ombudsman within 1 month of the end of the monitoring period.
Final decision
We have upheld this complaint because the Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman