Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of personal data in relation to Mr X’s council tax account. This is because the Information Commissioner’s Office is the body best placed to deal with such issues.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of personal data in relation to his council tax account. He also complains about its handling of his council tax refund and his complaint about these matters.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant, including Council’s response to his complaint.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. We do not investigate every complaint we receive and we generally expect complainants to refer complaints about data protection to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the body best placed to deal with them and specifically set up by Parliament to do so.
6. While Mr X may be dissatisfied with the time taken by the Council to send his council tax refund, and the way it addressed his complaint, there is insufficient evidence of fault or injustice caused to Mr X to warrant an investigation of these subsidiary matters.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Information Commissioner’s Office is the body best placed to deal with personal data issues.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman