The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has not provided proof that the complainant is required to pay council tax. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and because the court issued a liability order which said the complainant must pay the council tax.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains the Council has not provided proof she is required to pay council tax. She wants proof she has to pay. She also says the Council’s independent adjudicator is not independent.
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 there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6)) We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes correspondence between Ms X and the Council about the council tax. I also considered our Assessment Code and comments Ms X made in reply to a draft of this decision.
My assessment
Ms X has been registered for council tax since 2011. She paid council tax until December 2020. Ms X then stopped paying and now has arrears. The Council issued reminders and a summons. The court issued a liability order saying Ms X must pay the council tax. A liability order is a court order which says the person must pay the council tax.
Ms X entered into extensive correspondence with the Council which includes stating that payment of council tax is voluntary and that she would only pay if the Council answered specific questions. Ms X says the Council has not provided evidence she is required to pay or answered all her questions.
The Council explained how council tax works and that Ms X is liable to pay. It also explained that payment is not voluntary.
The Council’s independent complaints adjudicator responded to Ms X’s complaint. She explained the Council had followed the correct process, that Ms X would need to dispute the validity of the summons with the court or dispute liability with the Valuation Tribunal. The officer said that, as of May 2022, Ms X had arrears of £1850. Ms X says the officer is not independent because she is employed by the Council.
I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The law says people must pay their council tax and Ms X did this until 2020. If they do not pay councils will issue reminders, a summons and then enforce the liability order. The Council followed the correct process and explained why Ms X needs to pay. In addition, while the adjudicator is employed by the Council, she does not work for any specific department and is not involved in operational matters, budgets or staff management. This provides for a degree of independence and there is no requirement for councils to use complaint handlers who are not employed by the council.
The court confirmed Ms X must pay the council tax and issued a liability order. I have no power to investigate any matter that has formed part of court proceedings. If Ms X thinks there have been irregularities in any part of the process, including the issue of the summons, then that is a matter she would need to raise with the court.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and because the matters have been considered in court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman