Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about highway maintenance. This is because the complaint is late with no good reason to investigate now, and the courts are better placed to consider the complaint.

The complaint

1. Mrs Y complained the Council resurfaced part of the highway but not the full width, causing it to become uneven and water to collect on her driveway when it rains.
2. Mrs Y says this has led to her repeatedly having to repair her driveway which she says becomes icy in cold weather.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information Mrs Y provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. In 2019, the Council resurfaced half of the width of the highway outside Mrs Y’s home. A complaint was made to the Council about water collecting on Mrs Y’s driveway in 2020. In response the Council said a highways officer has inspected the road both before and after the work, and found that the road’s profile had not significantly changed.
7. Mrs Y then complained in August 2022 about the issue. The Council referred to its earlier response in 2020 and to drainage at the side of the verge which it had cleaned twice in 2020 and again in January 2022. It said it would take no further action and provided Mrs Y with our details. Mrs Y then approached us in March 2023.

Analysis

8. Mrs Y’s was reasonably aware of her reason to complain about the Council’s resurfacing of half of the width of the road when water began collecting shortly after the road was resurfaced in 2019. She is seeking to rely on the cause being the resurfacing, so an affect would need to have been noticed to identify this as the cause. Further, her husband made the same complaint to the Council in 2020 as referred to in the more recent complaint correspondence.
9. Mrs Y was therefore aware of her complaint more than 12 months ago, so her complaint is now late. We have discretion to disapply the rule outlined in paragraph three where we decide there are good reasons. Mrs Y has not provided any good reasons why she did not bring her complaint to us within 12 months of knowing about the matter. It is reasonable to expect her to have complained sooner so we will not investigate.
10. Further, Mrs Y has told us her injustice includes that she has had to repeatedly repair the driveway on her property because of the Council’s resurfacing of only half the highway.
11. The legislation from which the Ombudsman takes their power also places some restrictions on what we may investigate. One of these concerns negligence claims about damage to property or personal injury. These are legal claims which may only be determined by insurers or the courts.
12. We are not able to decide liability or award damages. Consequently, any claim for damages, such as costs for repairs to her driveway, which Mrs Y considers the Council to be responsible for, are matters more appropriately dealt with by the courts. We will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mrs Y’s complaint because the complaint is late with no good reason to investigate now, and the courts are better placed to consider the complaint.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman