IRRV Alert - week ending 9th October 2020
News
Consultations
Reports
New benefits and taxation decisions
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A weekly update on benefits and taxation decisions |
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Please note: our decisions are published three months after they are issued to councils, care providers and the person who has made the complaint. The cases below reflect the caselaw and guidance available at the time of issue and the individual circumstances of each case. Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council (19 005 195)
Summary: Mrs X complains the Council mismanaged her council tax account leaving her not knowing what she owed and why and then failed to deal with her complaint about this. Teignbridge District Council (20 000 523)
Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about the District Council not verifying whether a Parish Council had authority to vary its precept demand, or the amount of resulting council tax payable in the area. This is because the complaint is outside of our jurisdiction and the Ombudsman is unlikely to find fault by the District Council. Cheshire East Council (19 019 082)
Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s administration of the complainant’s council tax account. This is because it is unlikely he would find fault in the way the Council conducted the account, or that this has caused any injustice to the complainant. London Borough of Redbridge (19 008 985)
Summary: Ms B complains that the Council has mishandled her housing benefit claim including losing her documents, carrying out an unnecessary review and delaying in releasing payments. The Ombudsman finds no fault on the Council’s part. Crawley Borough Council (19 013 028)
Summary: Mr X complains the Council unfairly pursued recovery of council tax arrears, including the use of enforcement agents and did not take account of his vulnerability. He says this caused a deterioration in his mental health. The Ombudsman has not found fault with the Council’s actions. Manchester City Council (20 000 235)
Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision that the complainant is not entitled to Council Tax Reduction because he has capital above £16,000. This is because the complainant appealed to the Valuation Tribunal. East Staffordshire Borough Council (19 004 983)
Summary: Miss K complains about the Council’s decisions on her housing benefit claim. And about the way it recovered overpayments and refused claims for discretionary housing payments. The Ombudsman cannot look at the housing benefits decisions. But we do uphold the complaint about part of the way the Council recovered the overpayment. London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (19 008 708)
Summary: The Ombudsman found fault on Mr Y’s complaint about the Council delaying sending his appeal requests to the tribunal service. The Council delayed reconsidering its assessment decisions by up to 8 months and delayed sending his appeals to the Tribunal Service. The agreed action remedies the injustice caused. The Ombudsman found no fault on his complaint of it failing to promptly assess his benefit claims. London Borough of Haringey (18 007 364)
Summary: There was no fault in the way the Council handled Mr B’s claims for housing benefit and council tax support. Lewes District Council (19 013 206)
Summary: Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of his council tax account. This resulted in Mr X’s account being transferred to another property and him accruing a council tax debt. The Ombudsman finds fault with the Council as it changed Mr X’s account in error. The Council has agreed to pay Mr X £200 for the distress caused.
Summary: Mrs X complained the Council failed to stop enforcement action for Council tax arrears while it issued her an amended bill, which resulted in avoidable enforcement fees. The Council was not at fault. It dealt with Mrs X’s case and the bailiffs applied the fees in line with the law. North Somerset Council (19 017 278)
Summary: Mr X complains problems with the Council’s online council tax payment system meant he was unable to set up a direct debit causing him to fall into arrears and incur summons costs. Mr X could have avoided the summons costs by making a payment by one of the other payment methods until the problems setting up the direct debit could be resolved. Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council (19 021 051)
Summary: Mr X complained about the Council using enforcement agents to recover a council tax debt from his former address which he vacated in 2017. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.
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