Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about missed recycling collections. The Council has offered a suitable remedy.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained the Council repeatedly failed to collect recycling waste from the apartment building where she lived. She said this caused her and other residents the inconvenience of having to deal with the recycling themselves.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
3. 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 a council has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and copy correspondence from the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Ms X lives in an apartment building. The Council should empty the recycling bins every two weeks. The collection crew needs a working security fob, supplied by the building’s managing agent, to get access to the recycling bins.
7. The Council accepts it did not collect the recycling frequently enough from December 2022 onwards. That was partly because of points the Council was responsible for, such as staff shortages and not promptly requesting a security fob from the building’s managing agent when the recycling crew realised it did not have one. It was also partly due to matters outside the Council’s control, such as waiting for the agent to supply fobs that worked.
8. The Council accepts it did not deal properly with Ms X’s complaints. That meant Ms X did not know what was happening and had to escalate her complaint.
9. In June 2023, Ms X complained to us and we asked the Council about the matter. The Council then apologised to Ms X for the problems. It said it now expected to receive working fobs shortly, it would check the fobs worked and would then monitor its collections. The monitoring would end after six weeks if the Council was satisfied a normal service had resumed.
10. It is unlikely any investigation by the Ombudsman would recommend more than the Council is now doing. The monitoring period it still underway. It is reasonable in the circumstances to allow the monitoring period to be completed. If Ms X continues to have problems with the recycling collection after the monitoring period, she could then come back to us with a complaint the Council’s remedy had failed. However, that would be a new matter and it is currently speculative.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because investigation would be unlikely to achieve more than the Council has now offered.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman