The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the increase in the charge for the garden waste service. This is because we could not add to the Council’s response or achieve the outcome the complainant would like.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains the charge for the garden waste service has increased by 15%. He suggested to the Council that pensioners should get a £5 discount.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 an investigation if we decide: we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and information about charges made by other councils. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X complains his garden waste charge increased from £64 last year to £74 this year. The charge last year included an early bird discount which was not available this year. Mr X complains this is a 15% increase and the charge is high when compared to other councils in the area.
In response the Council explained the increase is due to inflationary pressures some of which are higher than the national average. It accepted the charge is at the high end when compared to some councils but also said it is a discretionary service.
It is for each council to set its charges and we cannot intervene in that process. The charge is higher than for some councils but I have found other councils where the charge is at least £70 a year. This indicates that while the charge is high it is not excessively high in comparison with the charging decisions made by other councils. In addition, this year’s charge does not include an early bird discount and it is the Council to decide whether to offer this discount.
If Mr X thinks the charge is too high he could decide to stop using the service or lobby his councillors for a lower charge next year, a discount for pensioners, or an early bird discount. It would be for the Council, not us, to decide what charge to set. We have no power to reduce the charge or to ask the Council to introduce a discount.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because an investigation would not lead to a different outcome and we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X would like.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman