OFFICIAL
Level 2, 570 Bourke Street Melbourne VIC 3000
Tel 03 9613 6222 Fax 03 9602 4761
Toll free 1800 806 314
16 September 2025
Our ref: FOI/25/5
Douglas Steley
Email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Douglas
Notice of decision – Request for documents under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982
We refer to your request for information under the
Freedom of Information Act
1982 (
FOI Act) lodged with the Victorian Ombudsman (
VO) on 17 August 2025.
You have requested access to the following:
1. The number of complaints received by VO about the Country Fire Authority
(CFA) for the calendar years 2010 to 2024.
2. The number of complaints received by VO about the CFA for the calendar
years 2010 to 2024 that were found to be valid and the number of
complaints that were dismissed.
Notice of decision
1. The number of complaints received by VO about the Country Fire
Authority (CFA) for the calendar years 2010 to 2024.
The information you have requested does not exist in a discrete form. However,
pursuant to section 19 of the FOI Act the VO has prepared a table which
contains the number of complaints received by VO about the CFA for the
calendar years 2010 to 2024. Please see table below.
Email xxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xxx.xx
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Website ombudsman.vic.gov.au
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Calendar
Total
Year
Complaints
2010
16
2011
11
2012
18
2013
20
2014
25
2015
9
2016
19
2017
20
2018
25
2019
30
2020
24
2021
24
2022
17
2023
15
2024
5
Grand Total
278
2. The number of complaints received by VO about the CFA for the
calendar years 2010 to 2024 that were found to be valid and the
number of complaints that were dismissed.
As we advised you in our previous decision dated 6 August 2025, VO publishes
information about how it handles complaints in its Annual Reports. You can
access these via the following link -
Annual reports | Victorian Ombudsman.
VO records complaint outcomes in a number of ways. Some examples include:
a) the complaint was informally resolved
b) the complainant was referred back to the initial agency as it had been
prematurely lodged with VO
c) further action required by VO.
VO does not record a complaint as ‘valid’ or ‘dismissed’. Therefore, we have
declined to provide access to these documents as they do not exist.
Complaint information relating to outcomes including those matters identified
above is subject to section 29A of the
Ombudsman Act 1973 (
Ombudsman
Act), which provides that the FOI Act does not apply to documents that disclose
information that relates to:
a) a complaint, a referred complaint, a referred matter or a matter referred
to the Ombudsman under section 16 of the Ombudsman Act; or
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b) an enquiry or investigation conducted under the Ombudsman Act; or
c) a recommendation made by the Ombudsman under the Ombudsman Act;
or
d) a report made under the Ombudsman Act or a draft of a report.
In making our decision, we have considered the object of the FOI Act, which is
to create a general right of access to information, limited only by exceptions and
exemptions necessary to protect essential public interests, privacy, and business
affairs.
Your review rights
If you are not satisfied with our decision, you have the right to apply for a review
of it by the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner (
OVIC) under
section 49A(1)(a) of the FOI Act.
A review application must be in writing, identify the decision to be reviewed and
the agency who made it. It must be made to OVIC within 28 days from the day
you receive this letter.
More information about review by OVIC, including a review application form to
assist you in making your application, is available at
https://ovic.vic.gov.au/freedom-of-information/apply-for-a-review/.
You may also lodge your application by:
email: xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xxx.xx
post: Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner PO Box 24274
MELBOURNE VIC 3001
Questions about this decision
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this request further, please
email us
at xxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xxx.xx. Yours sincerely
Kate
Solicitor
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