Summary: We found no fault on Mr B’s complaints which were within our jurisdiction about the way the Council dealt with his council tax account and claim for Council Tax Relief. There was no evidence to show the Council agreed to send him a report following court proceedings. Nor was there evidence of a claimed overpayment.

The complaint

1. Mr B complained about the way the Council dealt with his council tax account, including claims for Council Tax Relief (CTR), and specifically about it:
1. placing the account into his sole name in 2020;
2. summoning him to court in 2021 which made a liability order and attachment of earnings order against him, despite evidence of his low income;
3. failing to provide confirmation of bills for 2020 and 2021;
4. failing to refund council tax he paid for 2020/2021;
5. agreeing in court in 2022 to send him a full detailed report about his account which it failed to do;
6. wrongly calculating council tax for 2022/2023 as he was still receiving Job Seeker’s Allowance; and
7. not refunding overpayments he made for 2022/2023.
2. As a result, these decisions caused him financial hardship, inconvenience, and stress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
5. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. We may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
6. We can decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as, part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))
7. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone has a right of appeal, reference, or review to a tribunal about the same matter. We may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

8. I have not investigated the following complaints:

• Any complaint about the Council’s actions which took place before June 2022. This was because Mr B complained to us in June 2023. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. Any complaint about the Council’s actions before June 2022 are, therefore, late.
• Complaint a): This is because this took place before June 2022.
• Complaint b): This also took place before June 2022. In addition, even if it was in time, these were issues that could have been raised during court proceedings at the time. We can decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as, part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))
• Complaint c): Again, Mr B was aware of this as an issue at the time which was also before June 2022.
• Complaint d): He was aware of the Council’s refusal to refund council tax for this period which was before June 2022.

9. I am only investigating the complaint to 30 July 2024 which is the date we accepted the complaint for investigation.

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How I considered this complaint

10. I considered all the information Mr B sent, as well as the Council’s response to my enquiries on his complaint. I sent my draft decision to Mr B and the Council.

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What I found

11. Mr B complained about errors on his council tax account from 2020 but, for the reasons already stated, I am only investigating the following complaints:

Complaint e): failing to send detailed report agreed in court in 2022:

12. Mr B claimed the Council offered to send him a detailed review report about council tax errors and the harassment he said he experienced as a result. He claimed the Council offered to send him this during a court hearing in November 2022 but has not yet done so.
13. The Council confirmed information discussed at the hearing was referred to its Council Tax Billing Team and Benefit Team. It had nothing on record about agreeing at court to provide Mr B with this full detailed report.

My findings

14. I found no fault on this complaint. This was because there was no evidence showing the Council agreed at court to send any such report.

Complaint f) and g): wrongly calculating council tax for 2022/2023 and failing to refund him overpayments:

15. Mr B claimed the Council’s calculation for this period was wrong as it failed to properly take account of his employment. He also claimed the Council charged him too much Council tax and refused to refund what it had wrongly charged him during this period. Council tax for 2022/2023 ran from April 2022 to March 2023.
16. He explained he was unemployed from November 2021, claimed Universal Credit, and then Job Seekers Allowance. He argued he should not have paid the £1,141.00 demanded.
17. The Council received notice from the Department of Work and Pensions in April 2022 that he was no longer entitled to Universal Credit. The Council suspended his claim for CTR and asked him for proof of income and capital.
18. Mr B again applied for CTR the following month. He was again asked for proof of his income and capital. In June, the Council again asked about his income after returning a review form. Hearing nothing from him, the Council cancelled his CTR to September.
19. Mr B claimed he provided the information the Council asked him for but, it had no record of him sending it. The Council issued recovery action for 2022, and an officer spoke to Mr B at court in November.
20. The Council sent him a council tax bill in June 2023 based on his CTR claim which was using contributory based Job Seeker’s Allowance (JSA) for his income. Contributory JSA is paid for a maximum of six months. When it ended six months later, the Council used an assumed income of just under £10,000. This cancelled his entitlement to CTR, and a decision notice was issued.
21. In June 2024, the Valuation Tribunal for England heard Mr B’s appeal about liability for council tax and the Council’s decisions about CTR. I have read a copy of the Tribunal’s decision which dismissed his appeal. It found nothing wrong with the Council’s calculation of his liability up to October 2023.
22. The Council’s information showed from October 2023 to July 2024, he was given a sole occupier discount, was awarded almost full CTR, and in the period from April 2024, was awarded full CTR which matched his liability for that period. The Council issued court proceedings for a liability order for non-payment of council tax during these periods.

My findings

23. I have not considered any complaint Mr B had about the Council’s assessment of his council tax account up to October 2023, including the calculation of his liability, and its application of CTR on his account.
24. This was because these were issues considered by the Tribunal which means they are not within our jurisdiction. The Tribunal noted:

• his claim about sending evidence to the Council, for which there was no evidence, and its refusal of his request for backdating CTR. The Tribunal decided he failed to show he provided all the evidence the Council needed;
• each council has its own CTR scheme setting out its own rules and explanations about how calculations are made. The Council’s scheme required him to send an application, along with proof of income at that time, which Mr B failed to do;
• he had not applied for CTR for the entire period;
• Mr B’s arguments about his actual income during this period which he said meant he should have received full CTR; and
• the information the Council received from the Department of Works and Pension

25. The records show Mr B received full CTR, and almost full CTR, for the remaining period of October 2023 (account year April 2023 to March 2024) and July 2024 (account year April 2024 to March 2025). I found no fault during these periods.

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Final decision

26. I found no fault on Mr B’s complaint against the Council.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman