Summary: Ms X complained delays and unclear explanations by the Council about the calculation of her father, Mr Y’s, council tax meant her father was charged council tax for six months longer than he should have been. The Council applied discounts based on the circumstances at the time and was not at fault. It was at fault when it delayed responding to her review request and for requesting additional information it already had. The Council has already apologised for this. It has agreed to backdate the exemption, as it had agreed to do in the complaint response, to remedy the frustration and financial loss this caused.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained delays and unclear explanations by the Council about her father, Mr Y’s, council tax and how it was calculated meant her father was charged council tax for six months longer than he should have been. Ms X says this caused her father financial loss and caused her frustration and distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. 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, council tax exemption and discounts and council tax support or reduction.
4. If we are satisfied with a council’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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have considered the information provided by Ms X and discussed the complaint with her on the telephone.
6. I have considered the information provided by the Council in response to our initial enquiries.
7. I gave Ms X and the Council the opportunity to comment on a draft of this decision. I considered any comments I received in reaching a final decision.

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What I found

The relevant law

8. The primary legislation for council tax is the Local Government Finance Act 1992. The main secondary legislation concerned with collection and recovery is The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 SI 613, as amended (hereafter A&E Regs). The law sets out the discounts and exemptions which can be applied to council tax.
9. Council tax is a combination of a tax on the value of a property and a tax on individuals. The owner or occupier pays it. Certain properties are exempt from council tax. This includes a property which is lived in only by people who are severely mentally impaired.
10. Certain groups of residents may be disregarded when counting the number of adults in a property. These include:
• people who are severely mentally impaired and
• people caring for someone with a disability who is not their spouse, partner or a child under 18.
11. If everyone in the household is disregarded a 50% discount is applied. For those who live on their own, or if everyone else in the household is disregarded a 25% discount is applied.
12. To claim a severe mental impairment disregard, a doctor must confirm to the council that the person has a severe mental impairment and the person must be entitled to certain benefits such as attendance allowance. Case law says applications for the severe mental impairment discount cannot be backdated past the date of the award of attendance allowance.
13. Those on a low income may be able to claim financial assistance through the Council’s council tax reduction scheme.
14. If a property is occupied by someone defined as disabled and there have been adaptations to the property to assist them, they are charged as if they are in one band lower.
15. Appeals about whether or not to award a discount or exemption are to the Council then to the Valuation Tribunal Service.

What happened

16. This is a summary of the main events. It does not refer to every event that occurred.
17. In July 2020 Mr Y was hospitalised for 12 weeks. During this time, he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. In late November 2020, Ms X moved from her home in another council area to look after Mr Y, after he was discharged from hospital. Ms X’s local council applied an exemption to her property, so she did not have to pay council tax while she was away caring for her Mr Y.
18. Ms X telephoned the Council in November 2020 to enquire about whether a council tax reduction or exemption would be appropriate for her father. The Council sent her a form to complete for a severe mental impairment disregard for her father. Ms X wrote to the Council in early December returning the form and setting out their circumstances. She asked if there was a discount for his time in hospital. She explained she had taken over caring for her father and would continue to do so indefinitely.
19. The Council wrote to Ms X in December 2020. It explained there was no council tax discount available for Mr Y’s time in hospital. A carers discount would apply if Mr Y received attendance allowance and it sent her a form to apply for a 25% carers discount. Ms X responded in January 2021 with the relevant information. Ms X also applied for a band reduction due to disability.
20. The Council responded three days later to advise it had awarded the carer discount disregard and the severe mental impairment discount. An officer later telephoned Ms X to discuss whether Mr Y would qualify for a disability band reduction. They confirmed Mr Y did not meet the criteria for a band reduction.
21. The Council sent Ms X a revised bill which gave a 25% reduction from April to November 2020, and further 25% reductions (i.e. a 50% discount) between November 2020 and March 2021. The bill put the account in credit and the Council issued a refund for overpaid council tax to Mr Y in January 2021.
22. Ms X contacted the Council on 10 June 2021 to query Mr Y’s council tax. She said she understood that if Mr Y was living alone he would have been exempt from paying council tax. She believed if she had then moved in later, she would have been disregarded so he would not have paid council tax. She asked whether an exemption could be applied. The officer responded that they had asked for a review of the account to take place.
23. Ms X contacted the Council in July 2021 to ask about progress of the review. She says she sent the officer three further emails. On 6 July she found out the officer she had spoken to previously no longer worked in the council tax department and their emails were not being responded to. Ms X explained to another officer that she had requested a review of Mr Y’s council tax on 10 June. An officer emailed Ms X to say they had trouble accessing the previous officer’s emails and asked if Ms X had completed a severe mental impairment form. If so, could she send them a copy or complete a new one. Ms X responded she had completed the form the previous year. She then contacted other officers to raise her concerns. The Council advised Ms X it would provide her with a full response to her review request by 16 July.
24. On 16 July the Council responded to Ms X. It set out the law. It said if Mr Y was a ‘sole occupier’ he would receive a 100% exemption. Because there was a second occupier of the property, the property would not be considered exempt. It set out the criteria for when a person could be disregarded and said, ‘both persons could be considered to be disregarded persons for discount purposes which attracts a 50% discount’. It said that if Mr Y was on low income, he may be entitled to council tax reduction and provided a link to further information about this. It also set out Ms X’s statutory right of appeal. The Council also sent a similar letter to Ms X’s MP who had also contacted the Council on her behalf.
25. Ms X responded the next day to say she would no longer live with her father. She said had the Council made it clear Mr Y was paying council tax because she lived there, she would have moved out sooner. She requested a reconsideration of the charges back to November 2020. The Council asked for details of Ms X’s new address. She explained she would be living in a mobile home and house sitting for various friends. The Council issued Mr Y with a revised bill, applying a 100% exemption in late July 2021. Ms X complained to the Council.

Complaint responses

26. A Council officer responded to Ms X’s complaint in August 2021. They explained the Council had sent Ms X forms regarding a disability reduction, carer disregard and severe mental impairment in November/December 2020. It had amended the account in January 2021 with two 25% discounts applied and had refunded overpaid council tax. They said the next contact Ms X made was June 2021 when an officer confirmed how the charge was calculated. They acknowledged there was a delay between when an officer left the Council to when a reply was placed on the officer’s email. They said this was due to heavy workload in the team as it needed to implement financial support packages for those impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
27. The officer apologised for an officer having said there was no record of the severe mental impairment form. They confirmed this was on file and apologised for the upset this caused.
28. The officer said they would not backdate the exemption to 10 June when Ms X contacted the Council as it was linked to when she left the property. They acknowledged Ms X had asked about a reduction in late 2020 but found no reference to a 100% exemption until June 2021. They said they disagreed with Ms X’s statement that the Council had failed to provide an adequate and timely response which had cost her father approximately six months of council tax. They said, ‘the team are required to apply the legislation to the facts of the given situation, and it would be inappropriate for the Council to suggest who should or should not be in a property’. They advised Ms X that if Mr Y was on low income he could apply for council tax reduction.
29. Ms X remained unhappy and asked for her complaint to be considered further. She said she did not know how the discount was calculated and there was no letter to explain why two 25% discounts were applied. She said her father had been financially disadvantaged by the council tax charges. She also queried whether Mr Y’s property should have been considered as her permanent address.
30. A Council director responded to Ms X at the second stage of the Council’s complaints process. They agreed the Council had failed in its standards by not following up the email of 10 June when Ms X requested a review. The director also considered Ms X had not received an understandable explanation of the 50% discount. They said the Council had provided an explanation, but it was difficult to follow.
31. The director explained that as Mr Y now lived alone the property was exempt from council tax. This exemption did not apply when Ms X lived there and the property could not be disregarded. In the specific circumstances Ms X and Mr Y were both disregarded for council tax so only 50% was due. This was because council tax was originally a 50% people and 50% property tax. When both were living there, the property could not be disregarded but the people could so 50% was due. The director said it would not be appropriate for the Council to make assumptions about how long Ms X’s occupancy would last but the key consideration was if it was her sole or main residence.
32. They said they did not agree that the failure to respond had cost Mr Y six months of council tax. They said the amount of council tax should not determine the level of care that is required and whether the carer should be resident or not. They added ‘I would hate for any advice on council tax to be construed as advice on a care regime’. They said if the council tax was causing Mr Y financial hardship, she could contact them and they would look at how this could be addressed. They acknowledged the delay in responding to Ms X between 10 June and 16 July and said they would write off the council tax due for that period. They apologised for the upset Ms X’s dealings with the Council had caused. Ms X says the council tax due between 10 June and 16 July has not been written off.
33. In September 2021 Ms X asked for the severe mental impairment discount to be backdated to when Mr Y received his diagnosis in July 2020. The director spoke to Ms X and said they would provide a detailed response the next week. 10 days later Ms X emailed the director as she had not received a response.
34. The Director responded by email in early October 2021. They apologised for missing their own deadline which they said was due to system issues and leave. They confirmed the medical certificate for the severe mental impairment discount was signed on 25 November. They said they would reconsider if the medical certificate was from another date but said the certificate and attendance allowance had to align to get a discount and there was case law to support this. The attendance allowance was awarded on 11 November and this benefit came from the Department of Work and Pensions. They added if they were given new dates officially, they could look at whether any council tax for the period July to November could be refunded. In relation to it being Ms X’s permanent residence, they said Mr Y’s council tax was calculated based on her living there as her council tax in her own home in another council area was suspended.
35. Ms X responded and said the Council had not considered she was staying temporarily with her father and it had not disregarded her father’s time in hospital. She requested a recalculation of the council tax. The Council responded to say it would not recalculate it. It noted Ms X’s council tax on her own property was suspended as she was looking after her father.
36. Ms X responded reiterating her concerns and advising she would have moved out sooner had she known it was her living there that led to the council tax charges.
37. The director responded and apologised the Council’s explanation of how the bill was calculated was not very timely. They said Mr Y’s disregard applied from November 2020 as that was when the clinician gave the diagnosis and he received attendance allowance.
38. In late October 2021 Ms X provided further information from Mr Y’s consultant which showed the onset of Mr Y’s condition was earlier than November 2020. The director responded and thanked Ms X for the information but advised there were two conditions to fulfil. They said that unless the date of the attendance allowance award was backdated, they had no authority to backdate the discount. They explained the relevant date was the date of receipt of attendance allowance not the entitlement to it and this was supported by case law. As Mr Y did not receive attendance allowance until November 2020 the discount could not be backdated.
39. Ms X remained unhappy and complained to the Ombudsman.

Findings

40. We cannot investigate a complaint where a complainant has appealed to a tribunal. Ms X has appealed to the Valuation Tribunal about whether the Council was correct to consider her a permanent resident at Mr Y’s address as opposed to it being a temporary stay so I will not consider that issue. In addition, if Ms X disputed which discounts or exemptions were applied it was also open to her to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal about these matters
41. When Ms X contacted the Council, after she moved in with her father, it provided her with the relevant forms to apply for a discount/exemption. The Council then awarded Mr Y a 50% council tax discount based on the circumstances at the time. It applied a carer discount and severe mental impairment disregard and advised her of this. These showed on the council tax bill as two 25% discounts.
42. The Council tax regulations are complex and there are different circumstances in which a person is disregarded, or a property is considered exempt. The regulations were set by Parliament and it decided the circumstances in which an exemption or disregard applies. The Council applied the relevant disregards, in line with the regulations, based on Ms X being a carer and Mr Y receiving a disregard for his severe mental impairment. The Council was not at fault.
43. Ms X says had she known Mr Y would have received a 100% exemption if he lived alone, she would not have moved in. I acknowledge that may be the case. However, it was not for the Council to tell Ms X that if Mr Y lived alone he would receive a 100% exemption. That would be stepping beyond the remit of the council tax department. The Council responded to the circumstances as described by Ms X at the time and was not at fault.
44. I have seen no evidence Ms X queried the bill with the Council until 10 June 2021 and when she did the Council offered to review the council tax account. The Council was at fault when it failed to ensure it dealt with this request in a timely fashion. It failed to ensure correspondence with an officer who had left the Council was dealt with. In addition, an officer told Ms X they could find no record of the severe mental impairment form which Ms X found distressing and frustrating. In the stage two complaint response the director acknowledged these errors, apologised and offered to backdate the exemption to 10 June. This was an appropriate remedy for the frustration and financial loss caused by the delay. However, Ms X says Mr Y has not received this remedy.
45. The director in the stage two complaint response also acknowledged the explanation given by the Council regarding the discounts was difficult to understand. They apologised for this and provided a clearer explanation. That was appropriate.
46. The Council has throughout its responses advised Ms X that if Mr Y was on a low income he may be able to claim council tax reduction. Ms X has not pursued this and as Ms X has moved out Mr Y is no longer paying council tax, as he is receiving a full council tax exemption.
47. Ms X sought to backdate the severe mental impairment disregard and provided medical evidence in support of this. The Council explained this could only be backdated if there was medical evidence and if Mr Y received backdated attendance allowance. Case law in January 2021 has said the discount cannot be backdated past the date of the award of attendance allowance. The Council has acted in line with the regulations and case law and is not at fault.
48. The Council responded to Ms X’s complaint in line with its complaints procedure and answered Ms X’s further queries before referring her to us. The Council was not at fault in the way it responded to her complaint.

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Agreed action

49. Within one month of the final decision the Council has agreed to backdate Mr Y’s severe mental impairment exemption to 10 June 2021, as it agreed to in the stage two complaint response to Ms X.

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Final decision

50. I have completed my investigation. There was no fault in the advice given to Ms X about her father’s council tax. The Council was at fault for requesting information it already had and for not responding to a review request. It has agreed to provide a remedy for the injustice this caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman