The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a council tax liability order as it is unlikely we will find fault by the Council.
The complaint
Mr X complains the Council has not provided him with a copy of the liability order it obtained against him in court for unpaid council tax. Mr says this has caused him stress and anxiety.
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 not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating (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
In its complaint response of June 2026, the Council confirmed that a liability order was granted by the court in April 2025. It explained that the court hearing was held as part of a bulk list of other council taxpayers, and it provided Mr X with the extract of that list which related to his personal account. It told Mr X that the Council’s records, along with the court hearing and extracted information from the court listing, provided sufficient legal evidence that the liability order had been granted I recognise Mr X remains unhappy, but we will not investigate as it is unlikely we will find fault. The Council has provided details of the liability order; the liability order is essentially a legal decision not a physical document.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is unlikely we will find fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman