Summary: We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Authority’s decision to change a discretionary transport service in 2022. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained about the Authority’s decision to end her regular booking arrangement for its Dial-a-Ride discretionary transport service in 2022. She says that she has to book on a weekly basis now which is inconvenient and less reliable.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Authority.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X says she previously used the Authority’s discretionary transport service for the elderly on a weekly basis under a regular booking service for the previous 15 years. Following the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown the regular booking service was not re-instated due to limited resources and drivers.
6. Mrs X complained to the authority in 2022 and it responded by confirming that the service was only available on a weekly booking arrangement as there were insufficient resources to provide a regular booking service. Mrs X made a further complaint in 2023 and the response was similar. The service is not a scheduled bus service but a discretionary one provided according to the resources available.
7. We will not investigate this complaint which was by us more than 12 months after the complainant became aware of the problems with the service. The time for receiving complaints is from when someone became aware of the matter they wish to complain about, not when they complained to the Council or it issued its final response. We would expect someone to complain to us within a year, even if they were dissatisfied with the time the complaints procedure was taking.

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Final decision

8. We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Authority’s decision to change a discretionary transport service in 2022. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman