The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has failed to respond to a subject access request. This is because it is a matter best considered by the Information Commissioner’s Office.
The complaint
Miss X complains that the Council has refused to respond to a subject access request because it does not have consent from her son.
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 or continue an investigation if we decide there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B)) 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.
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
I will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. This is because it relates to data protection and how the Council has dealt with her subject access request. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is better placed to consider this complaint.
The ICO is the UK’s independent authority set up to uphold information rights. It promotes openness by public bodies and protects the privacy of individuals. It deals with complaints about public authorities’ failures to comply with data protection legislation. This includes how authorities store and manage access to information they hold about individuals and how they respond to requests to access information.
Where someone has a complaint about data protection, the Ombudsman usually expects them to bring the matter to the attention of the ICO. This is because the ICO is in a better position than the Ombudsman to consider such complaints.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the ICO are best placed to deal with complaints about data protection matters.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman