Office of the Ombudsman

Annual Report 2009

Contents

Annex A - Statistics

Table of Contents

Overview

Civil Service

Local Authority

HSE

An Post

Table 1: Overview of 2009 complaints

Total complaints carried forward from 2008 1040
Total complaints within remit - received in 2009 2873
Total on hand for 2009 3913
Total complaints completed in 2009 2784
Total complaints carried forward to 2010 1129
Total complaints outside remit - received in 2009 1077
Total all complaints received in 2009 3950
Total all enquiries received in 2009 9913

Table 2: Numerical and percentage breakdown by sector of complaints within remit

Civil Service 1204 42%
Local Authorities 859 30%
Health Service Executive 757 26%
An Post 47 1.6%
Disability Act 2005 6 0.2%
Total 2873  

Table 3: Numerical and percentage breakdown of complaints completed by outcome

Assistance provided 860 31%
Not upheld 781 28%
Discontinued 589 21%
Complaint resolved 400 14%
Withdrawn 112 4%
Partially resolved 33 1.2%
Total 2784  

Table 4: 3-year comparison of complaints received within remit

2009 * 2867
2008 * 2781
2007 * 2575

* Figure does not include complaints received under the Disability Act, 2005. See table 2 for 2009 details.

Table 5: 10-year trend of complaints received within remit

2009 2873
2008 2787
2007 2578
2006 2245
2005 2243
2004 2064
2003 2213
2002 2326
2001 2539
2000 2136

Table 6: Numerical breakdown of complaints received by county

Carlow 31
Cavan 31
Clare 93
Cork 372
Donegal 107
Dublin 714
Galway 143
Kerry 104
Kildare 119
Kilkenny 37
Laois 50
Leitrim 24
Limerick 179
Longford 17
Louth 61
Mayo 51
Meath 110
Monaghan 34
Offaly 45
Roscommon 32
Sligo 43
Tipperary 71
Waterford 87
Westmeath 41
Wexford 57
Wicklow 73
Outside Republic 147
Total 2873

Table 7: Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint received outside remit

Private companies 405 38%
Banking/Insurance 261 24%
Public bodies outside remit 140 13%
Miscellaneous 114 10.7%
Courts / An Garda Síochána 100 9%
Terms and conditions of employment 57 5.3%
Total 1077  

Table 8: Civil Service


Numerical breakdown by government
department of complaints received		 Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Social and Family Affairs - see 8(a) 196 772 968
Revenue Commissioners - see 8(b) 21 117 138
Justice, Equality and Law Reform - see 8(c) 14 103 117
Agriculture, Fisheries and Food - see 8(d) 24 87 111
Education and Science - see 8(e) 9 54 63
Environment, Heritage and Local Government -
see 8(f)		 10 25 35
Health and Children - see 8(g) 8 12 20
Enterprise, Trade and Employment - see 8(h) 1 6 7
Foreign Affairs - see 8(i) 1 6 7
Communications, Energy and Natural Resources -
see 8(j)		 3 2 5
Transport - see 8(k) 1 1 2
Others 9 19 28
Total 297 1204 1501

Table 8(a): Department of Social and Family Affairs

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Child benefit 298 39%
Miscellaneous 229 30%
Disability, invalidity and maternity payments 58 7%
Old age & retirement pensions 54 7%
No reply to correspondence 34 4%
Widows and one-parent family payment 32 4%
Back-to-work, education allowance 17 2%
Carer’s allowance 16 2%
Pay-related social insurance 13 1.7%
Fuel allowance and free schemes 10 1.3%
Family income supplement 6 0.8%
Occupational injury benefit 4 0.5%
Unemployment payments 1 0.1%
Total 772  

Table 8(b): Office of the Revenue Commissioners

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Income tax 62 54%
Miscellaneous 16 14%
Customs and excise 11 9%
Delay, no reply to correspondence 11 9%
Value added tax, inheritance, Capital gains tax 9 8%
Stamp duty 5 4%
Vehicle Registration Tax 2 2%
Total 116  

Table 8(c): Department of Justice, Equality & Law Reform

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Administration of visa or asylum applications 87 84%
No reply to correspondence 9 9%
Miscellaneous 5 5%
Delay 1 1%
Quality of service 1 1%
Total 103  

Table 8(d): Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Single farm payment 22 25%
Miscellaneous 17 19%
Rural environment protection scheme (REPS) 12 14%
Farm development grants 11 13%
Early retirement scheme 9 10%
No reply to correspondence 5 6%
Livestock grants 3 3%
Disease Eradication Scheme 2 2.5%
Area aid 2 2.5%
Milk quota 2 2.5%
Forest premium scheme 2 2.5%
Total 87  

Table 8(e): Department of Education and Science

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Higher education grants & fees 26 48%
Delay, failure to reply to correspondence 12 22%
Miscellaneous 8 15%
Special education 4 7%
Examinations 2 4%
National office for victims of abuse (NOVA) 2 4%
Total 54  

Table 8(f): Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Miscellaneous 15 60%
No reply to correspondence 7 28%
Motor tax, driving licence, driving test 3 12%
Total 25  

Table 8(g): Department of Health and Children

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
General Registrar’s Office 7 58%
Miscellaneous 3 25%
No reply to correspondence 2 17%
Total 12  

Table 8(h): Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Miscellaneous 5 84%
No reply to correspondence 1 16%
Total 6  

Table 8(i): Department of Foreign Affairs

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Passport application 3 50%
No reply to correspondence 2 33%
Quality of Service 1 17%
Total 6  

Table 8(j): Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
No reply to correspondence 2 100%
Total 2  

Table 8(k): Department of Transport

Numerical and percentage breakdown of types of complaint    
Delay in transferring penalty points 1 100%
Total 1  

Table 9: Civil Service – Numerical breakdown of complaints completed by
outcome

Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed
Social and Family
Affairs		 97 4 414 103 14 122 754
Revenue Commissioners 16 0 13 49 6 38 122
Justice, Equality and
Law Reform		 5 0 79 14 10 5 113
Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food		 4 0 8 23 2 40 77
Education and Science 9 0 7 7 3 21 47
Environment,
Heritage and Local
Government		 1 0 11 8 2 6 28
Health and
Children		 5 0 3 3 1 1 13
Enterprise, Trade and Employment 1 0 5 1 0 0 7
Foreign Affairs 1 0 3 2 0 0 6
Communications, Energy and Natural
Resources		 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Transport 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Others 2 0 6 5 2 7 22
Total 141 4 550 215 40 240 1,190

Table 10: Local Authorities

Numerical breakdown by local authority
of complaints received		 Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Carlow 10 9 19
Cavan 7 4 11
Clare 27 34 61
Cork City Council * 11 46 57
Cork County * 22 53 75
Donegal 15 41 56
Dublin City Council 35 61 96
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown 34 46 80
Fingal 11 32 43
Galway City Council* 12 16 28
Galway County * 27 34 61
Kerry 22 34 56
Kildare 26 30 56
Kilkenny 5 10 15
Laois 15 31 46
Leitrim 2 5 7
Limerick City Council * 5 31 36
Limerick County * 12 37 49
Longford 7 7 14
Louth 10 15 25
Mayo 21 33 54
Meath 25 22 47
Monaghan 5 15 20
North Tipperary 11 13 24
Offaly 6 20 26
Roscommon 11 14 25
Sligo * 1 11 12
South Dublin 14 31 45
South Tipperary 19 14 33
Waterford City Council 5 14 19
Waterford County 2 19 21
Westmeath * 8 18 26
Wexford 15 24 39
Wicklow 13 35 48
Total 471 859 1,330

Complaints received against borough councils, and town councils are included in the county figures.

*Monthly CIC visits or regional visits were made to these counties in 2009 and this is likely to have affected the number of complaints received.

Table 10(a): Local Authorities

Numerical breakdown of types of complaint received    
Housing     311
  Allocations & transfers 214  
  Repairs 38  
  Loans & grants 26  
  Rents 17  
  Sales 16  
       
Planning     176
  Enforcement 106  
  Administration 70  
       
Roads and traffic     109
Delay/Failure to reply to correspondence     98
Miscellaneous     61
Waste disposal     44
Sewerage and drainage     12
Water supply     11
Provision of service     9
Service charges     8
Quality of service     7
Rates     4
Parks/Open space     4
Motor tax & Drivers licence     3
Acquisition of land/rights     2
Total     859

Table 11: Local Authorities - Numerical breakdown of complaints completed
by outcome

Resolved Partially resolved Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not Upheld Total completed
Carlow 1 0 2 5 1 2 11
Cavan 0 0 5 1 0 2 8
Clare 6 1 6 4 0 15 32
Cork City Council 6 0 3 16 0 9 34
Cork County 8 1 9 19 2 14 53
Donegal 3 0 17 6 3 8 37
Dublin City Council 16 0 10 19 2 24 71
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown 9 13 4 8 3 15 52
Fingal 3 0 7 14 2 7 33
Galway City Council 6 1 2 3 0 8 20
Galway County 9 2 4 8 3 10 36
Kerry 8 0 5 10 1 12 36
Kildare 8 1 8 3 0 14 34
Kilkenny 2 0 2 3 0 2 9
Laois 4 0 9 11 0 5 29
Leitrim 0 0 1 2 0 1 4
Limerick City Council 3 1 1 14 2 5 26
Limerick County 7 0 5 9 4 10 35
Longford 0 0 2 4 0 5 11
Louth 1 0 3 7 0 4 15
Mayo 4 1 9 10 1 12 37
Meath 10 0 6 4 1 13 34
Monaghan 1 0 1 0 0 8 10
North Tipperary 6 0 2 2 2 8 20
Offaly 4 1 2 5 0 6 18
Roscommon 2 0 5 4 0 2 13
Sligo 0 0 1 3 0 2 6
South Dublin 9 0 5 7 2 10 33
South Tipperary 7 0 9 2 0 8 26
Waterford City Council 3 0 3 3 0 6 15
Waterford County 2 0 6 2 4 3 17
Westmeath 0 0 4 5 0 7 16
Wexford 2 0 10 12 3 2 29
Wicklow 4 0 11 7 3 7 32
Total 154 22 179 232 39 266 892

Complaints received against borough corporations, urban district councils and town commissioners are included in the county figures.

HSE administrative areas

Dublin Mid-Leinster South West Dublin North
East

Dublin Midlands
Hospitals Group
Adelaide & Meath &
National Children’s
Hospital, Tallaght

Coombe Women &
Infants University
Hospital

Midland Regional
Hospital, Mullingar

Midland Regional
Hospital, Portlaoise

Midland Regional
Hospital, Tullamore

Naas General Hospital

Our Lady’s Hospital for
Sick Children, Crumlin

Dublin South
Hospitals Group

National Maternity
Hospital, Holles Street

Royal Victoria Eye & Ear
Hospital

St Colmcille’s Hospital,
Loughlinstown, Co.
Dublin

St. James’s Hospital

St. Luke’s Hospital

St. Michaels Hospital,
Dún Laoghaire

St. Vincent’s University
Hospital, Elm Park

South Eastern
Hospitals Group
Lourdes Orthopaedic
Hospital, Kilcreene,
Kilkenny

South Tipperary
General Hospital,
Clonmel

St. Luke’s General
Hospital, Kilkenny

Waterford Regional
Hospital

Wexford General
Hospital

Southern
Hospitals Group

Bantry General
Hospital

Cork University
Hospital

Erinville Hospital,
Cork

Kerry General
Hospital

Mallow General
Hospital

Mercy University
Hospital, Cork

South Infirmary-
Victoria University
Hospital, Cork

St. Mary’s
Orthopaedic Hospital,
Gurranabraher, Cork

Mid-Western
Hospitals Group
Mid-Western Regional
Hospital, Dooradoyle

Mid-Western Regional
Hospital, Ennis

Mid-Western Regional
Hospital, Nenagh

Mid-Western Regional
Maternity Hospital,
Limerick

Mid-Western Regional
Orthopaedic Hospital,
Croom, Co Limerick

St John’s Hospital
Limerick

West and North
West Hospitals
Group

Letterkenny General
Hospital

Mayo General
Hospital, Castlebar

Merlin Park Regional
Hospital, Galway

Our Lady’s Hospital,
Manorhamilton

Portiuncula Hospital,
Ballinasloe

Roscommon County
Hospital

Sligo General Hospital

University College
Hospital, Galway

Dublin North
Hospitals Group
Beaumont Hospital

Cappagh National
Orthopaedic
Hospital

Children’s
University Hospital,
Temple Street

Connolly Hospital,
Blanchardstown

Mater
Misericordiae
Hospital

Rotunda Hospital

North Eastern
Hospitals Group

Cavan General
Hospital

Louth County
Hospital, Dundalk

Monaghan General
Hospital

Our Lady of
Lourdes Hospital,
Drogheda

Our Lady’s
Hospital, Navan

Table 12: Hospitals

Numerical breakdown of complaints received by administrative area Brought
forward from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Dublin South Hospitals Group 3 16 19
West and North Western Hospitals Group 4 15 19
Southern Hospitals Group 4 13 17
Dublin North East Hospitals Group 4 10 14
Dublin and Mid-Leinster Hospitals Group 5 8 13
South Eastern Hospitals Group 3 7 10
Mid-Western Hospitals Group 2 8 10
North Eastern Hospitals Group 2 8 10
Total 27 85 112

Table 12(a): Hospitals: Numerical breakdown of types of complaint received

Miscellaneous     36
Hospital services     32
  Miscellaneous 32
Hospital charges     9
Delay/Failure to reply to correspondence     6
Hospital services - psychiatric     1
Health Services     1
Total     85

Table 13: Hospitals: Numerical breakdown of complaints completed by outcome

  Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed		  
Dublin South Hospitals Group 0 0 3 8 0 1 12  
Southern Hospitals
Group		 0 0 2 3 0 6 11
West & North
Western Hospitals
Group		 1 0 1 7 0 1 10  
Mid-Western
Hospitals Group		 1 0 4 1 0 2 8  
Dublin North East
Hospitals Group		 2 0 3 1 0 1 7  
South Eastern
Hospitals Group		 2 0 2 1 0 2 7  
Dublin & Mid-
Leinster Hospitals
Group		 1 0 2 1 1 2 7  
North Eastern
Hospitals Group		 1 0 2 3 0 1 7  
Total 8 0 19 25 1 16 69  

Table 14: *Non-Hospitals: Numerical breakdown of complaints received by administrative area


 Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Dublin Mid-Leinster 53 158 211
South 49 150 199
Dublin North East 45 140 185
West 35 148 183
Total 182 596 778

*The term ‘non-hospitals’ refers to types of complaints that are associated with services administered by or on behalf of the HSE. For example: supplementary welfare allowance, medical card entitlement or nursing home subvention.

Table 15: Health Act 2004: Numerical breakdown of complaints received


 Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Complaints relating to health repayment scheme 52 73 125
Complaints under section 38 of the Health Act
2004 bodies*		 0 3 3
Complaints under section 39 of the Health Act
2004 bodies*		 0 0 0
Total 52 76 128

* These complaints relate to health or personal social services provided by a service provider who has entered into an arrangement with the HSE, or who has received assistance from the HSE for that purpose.

Table 16: Disability Act 2005: Numerical breakdown of complaints received


 Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
Disability Act complaints – Total 0 6 6

Table 17: Non-Hospitals, Health Act 2004 & Disability Act 2005

Numerical breakdown of types of complaint received    
Supplementary welfare allowance (SWA)     202
  Exceptional needs payment 69  
  Rent and mortgage allowances 60  
  Miscellaneous 51  
Back-to-school - clothing/footwear allowance 22  
Health services (general)     106
  Medical card 105  
  Drugs, medicines and appliances 1  
Hospital services     83
  Nursing homes/long stay 76  
  Miscellaneous 7  
Miscellaneous     125
Cash payments (other than SWA)     60
Delay/Failure to reply to correspondence     30
Health services     23
Services for the elderly - Housing aid     18
Childcare/Social work services     16
Hospital charges     7
Dental service     4
Hospital services - psychiatric     4
Total     678

*The term ‘non-hospitals’ refers to types of complaints that are associated with services administered by or on behalf of the HSE. For example: supplementary welfare allowance, medical card entitlement or nursing home subvention.

Table 18: Non-Hospitals: Numerical breakdown of complaints completed by
outcome

  Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed
South 21 1 24 31 7 51 135
Dublin Mid-
Leinster		 14 2 20 23 4 68 131
Dublin North East 15 4 24 22 7 53 125
West 17 0 10 32 4 42 105
Total 67 7 78 108 22 214 496

*The term ‘non-hospitals’ refers to types of complaints that are associated with services administered by or on behalf of the HSE. For example: supplementary welfare allowance, medical card entitlement or nursing home subvention.

Table 19: Health Act 2004: Numerical breakdown of complaints completed by
outcome

  Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed
Complaints
relating to Health
repayment scheme		 18 0 23 4 3 30 78
*Complaints
under Section 38
of the Health Act
2004 bodies		 0 0 2 1 0 0 3
*Complaints
under Section 39
of the Health Act
2004 bodies		 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 18 0 25 5 3 30 81

Table 20: Disability Act 2005: Numerical breakdown of complaints completed
by outcome

Total
2009		 Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed
Disability Act
Complaints		 0 0 2 1 2 1 6

Table 21: An Post Numerical breakdown of complaints received

  Brought
forward
from 2008		 Received
in 2009		 On hand
for 2009
An Post 11 47 58

Table 22: An Post: Numerical breakdown of complaints completed by outcome

  Resolved Partially
resolved		 Assistance
provided		 Discontinued Withdrawn Not
upheld		 Total
completed
An Post 13 0 7 12 4 14 50