Summary: Mr F complains violence was used by an enforcement agent in recovery of a council tax debt and he was forced to pay for council tax he did not owe. The Ombudsman has found no fault in the way the Council has calculated Mr F’s council tax liability or administered his accounts. We have discontinued the investigation into the enforcement agent’s conduct.

Summary: Mr and Mrs X complain about the Council’s failure to consider their request for a review of entitlement under its Council Tax Support Scheme. The Ombudsman has found some fault in what the Council did but this did not lead to significant injustice. Other parts of Mr and Mrs X’s complaint are outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

Summary: Mr B complained about the way the Council had dealt with his council tax account. He said it had failed to send him the correct bills or summons or respond to his complaint. I cannot find fault with the actions of the Council.

Summary: Mr X complains that the Council increased his council tax payment without explanation. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because there is no evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about housing benefit decisions from 2017. This is because it is a late complaint and because the complainant could have used her appeal rights. In addition, it is now too late for the Council to award backdated benefit.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the way the council tax department responded when the complainant reported he had moved. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault and injustice to warrant an investigation.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Ms B’s complaint about the Council’s actions relating to arrears of council tax. It is reasonable to expect Ms B to make an appeal to the Valuation Tribunal if she wants to challenge the Council’s decisions on her liability for council tax. And the Ombudsman cannot achieve any more for Ms B on the other complaints she has raised.

Summary: Mrs X complains that the Council has pursued her for an historic council tax debt without providing details of the debt. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because any dispute about liability is a matter for the Valuation Tribunal.

Summary: Mr X complains about the lack of communication with the Council to explain changes to his council tax bill. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has now been settled and there are insufficient grounds to warrant investigation.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about his club’s liability for business rates. This is because it was for the court to decide whether Mr B’s club was liable to pay the amount the Council has demanded.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the complainant’s request for the Council to remove two county court judgements from her credit file. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and the Ombudsman could not add to the Council’s response.

Summary: Ms X complains that the Council unreasonably tried to recover an overpayment of housing benefit and council tax and failed to provide reasons. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has been remedied.

Summary: Mr X complained the Council wrongly sent recovery letters and court summonses to him for council tax despite informing the Council there were tenants living in his properties. The Council is at fault for incorrectly sending a recovery letter and a court summons to him. The Council has agreed to apologise to Mr X and provide him with a financial remedy of £100 for the injustice caused. We are happy with the service improvements the Council said it intends to make.

Summary: Miss B complains that the Council did not properly deal with a complaint about her Council Tax account, and did not explain how recent bills had been calculated. The Council dealt with her complaint, but made a mistake when it processed her bill and the explanation the Council gave to Miss B about her bill was wrong. Miss B remains uncertain how much she should have to pay. The Council should pay Miss B £100 for the unnecessary inconvenience and distress she suffered and review its procedures to prevent similar fault occurring again.

Summary: Ms X complains the Council has taken enforcement action without due regard for her family’s personal or financial circumstances. There is no fault in the way the Council pursued the Council Tax debts. We do not uphold Ms X’s complaint.

Summary: Ms X complains that the Council is charging too much council tax for her dwelling. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because there is a right of appeal to a Valuation Tribunal. The council tax itself affects all or most of the residents of the area and is also, therefore, out of jurisdiction.

Summary: Mr X complains that the Council obtained a Liability Order for unpaid council tax after previously promising not to obtain such an order. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because the matter has been settled and there is no significant remaining injustice to warrant investigation.

Summary: Ms B complains the Council’s enforcement agent acted maliciously when recovering council tax arrears. She says this caused distress and items were not returned. The Ombudsman does not find there is fault by the Council.

Summary: Mr C complains the Council failed to deal with his claim for council tax support and wrongly took recovery action against him for council tax arrears. The Ombudsman has found fault in the way the Council dealt with Mr C’s correspondence and account resulting in unnecessary recovery action. The Council has already withdrawn the summonses and associated costs and made a hardship award to Mr C. However, the Ombudsman considers the Council should also apologise and pay £100 to Mr C.

Summary: Mr B complains the Council took enforcement action against him for council tax arrears that were not his. Mr B says the Council’s actions have cause him distress and inconvenience. The Ombudsman has not found fault with the Council.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about council tax arrears because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint that the Council delayed sending business rates bills to him and failed to tell him about the court hearing date. This is because we cannot reconsider the court’s decision on his liability for business rates or investigate the Council’s conduct and commencement of court proceedings.

Summary: There was fault in the way the council dealt with recovery of 2014/15 council tax and some delay in dealing with a discretionary housing payment application. The Council agreed to remove the 2014/15 council tax account from bailiffs and remove all the bailiff costs added to it after December 2015. The Council also agreed to pay Mr and Mrs X £100 to reflect their time and trouble