London Borough of Tower Hamlets (23 004 103)

Category : Benefits and tax > Council tax

Decision : Upheld

Decision date : 22 Nov 2023

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Council tax payments because the matter has been remedied.

The complaint

  1. Mr X complains that the Council told him in 2022 that he was in arrears with his payments despite his Direct Debit.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

  1. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

  1. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
  2. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

  1. Mr X says that the Council told him in December 2022 that he owed £127 in Council tax as the payment had not been received from his bank account.
  2. The Council has now apologised for this and told him that his account was up to date.
  3. I appreciate that Mr X would have been concerned by the original notification from the Council, but I am satisfied that the Council’s apology and confirmation of the correct position of his account is an acceptable remedy to the complaint.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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