Overview
A solicitor, Mr C, complained that the Company he represents was misled by a local enterprise company giving reassurances that funding would be made available. The application was subsequently refused and Mr C claimed that this led to financial losses for the Company.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:
- (a) Inverness and Nairn Enterprise (INE) misled the Company by giving a reasonable expectation that the application for grant assistance would be successful and that the Company unjustly incurred costs as a result of the subsequent rejection of the application (upheld);
- (b) INE gave assurances that the beginning of preparatory work on site would not prejudice the likely success of the application. The beginning of such work was later used as a reason for rejecting the complaint (upheld);
- (c) INE did not alert the Company at the beginning of the application process to issues of displacement and additionality which would later form the basis for the rejection of the application (upheld); and
- (d) there were inconsistencies in the reasons offered to the Company for the rejection of the application (not upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board of HIE:
- (i) apologise to the Company;
- (ii) review the way applications for financial assistance are supported to ensure clarity of expectations;
- (iii) address the need for clear, documented advice to applicants throughout that process; and
- (iv) ensure that all eligibility criteria are clearly addressed at the beginning and throughout the application process.