Oxford City Council (21 008 095)
Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 02 Feb 2022
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about council tax. This is because it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to appeal the matter to the Valuation Tribunal.
The complaint
- Mr Y complains the Council initially issued him with council tax bills for the years 2016/2017 and 2017/2018 which said he did not have to pay anything for his council tax but has since contacted him to say he owes over £1,500 in council tax.
- Mr Y says he has suffered upset and has been financially impacted.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
- The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information Mr Y and the Council provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr Y disputes his liability for the council tax the Council says is owed for the financial years 2016/2017 and 2017/2018. He says he received bills which showed he was not eligible to pay council tax during this period as he was receiving council tax support at the time. He says the Council then contacted him in September 2020 to say he owed over £1,500. He is unhappy the Council has recovered the unpaid council tax through an attachment of earnings order and would like the money to be refunded.
- Mr Y complained to the Council in September 2020. The Council denied fault. Mr Y then approached us in September 2021. The Council issued its final response in January 2022, which confirmed its position had not changed.
Analysis
- The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction. This is often free and reasonable adjustments can be made where necessary for access to the tribunal’s service.
- Consequently, it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to use his right to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal if he wishes to dispute the Council’s application of the council tax support. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman