The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this council tax complaint. This is because part of the complaint has been considered in court and there is another part the complainant says he will take to court. For other issues there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and the complainant could complain to the Information Commissioner.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains the Council changed his council tax bill with no warning, wrongly removed the single person discount (SPD), breached data protection, and caused him physical and mental injury. Mr X wants a council tax refund and compensation.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate 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), as amended, section 34(B)) We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has started court action about the matter. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended) We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended) It is our decision whether to start, and when to end an investigation into something the law allows us to investigate. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence, Mr X’s court claim, and an update from the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council provides a 100% council tax discount for care leavers until they are 25 years old. This is explained on the Council’s website. Mr X received this discount and referred to the age limit in an email he sent to the Council in 2022 when he was discussing the SPD.
The Council issued a nil council tax bill in March 2023 for 2023/24; the bill was nil because Mr X was a care leaver.
The Council issued a new bill in December when Mr X became 25 years old. The bill did not include the SPD which Mr X says he is entitled to.
Mr X complained about the new bill and said he had not been told he would have to pay council tax from December. He also made complaints about the SPD and alleged the Council had broken data protection law. Mr X said the Council had discriminated against him and caused physical and mental injury.
I will not start an investigation for the following reasons.
I cannot investigate the removal of the SPD. This is because Mr X started legal action about the SPD issue. The law says we cannot investigate any issue that forms part of legal proceedings. In addition, the Council has refunded the amount Mr X was seeking for the SPD and has applied the SPD to his account.
I will not investigate the alleged breach of data protection law because Mr X can complain to the Information Commissioner (ICO). It is reasonable to expect him to do this because the ICO is the appropriate body to consider data protection complaints.
I will not investigate the complaint about the Council issuing a revised council tax bill without warning. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault. The Council correctly explained that a council tax bill must reflect the circumstances that exist at the time of billing. In addition, the age limit is explained on the website and Mr X sent an email suggesting he was aware of the age limit.
Finally, Mr X says the Council treated him badly, has discriminated against him, and caused physical and mental injury. Mr X says he has solicitors in place and intends to start legal action against the Council for personal injury. We will not investigate this issue because personal injury claims need to be determined in court. It is reasonable to expect Mr X to take legal action because the courts are the appropriate body to determine his claim, he is in contact with solicitors and has said he will soon start a legal action. We cannot decide if someone has suffered a personal injury or determine damages for any injury.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because we cannot investigate the SPD issue, Mr X can start legal action and approach the ICO, and because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman