A problem with Vancouver City Hall? Where to take it, from 311 to the BC Ombudsperson

Most problems with the City of Vancouver are about a service: a pothole, a missed garbage pickup, a permit that is taking months, a bill that looks wrong. Some are about a decision that seems unfair. A smaller number are about how an elected person behaved. Each kind goes to a different place, and the order matters, because the offices at the end usually ask whether you tried the earlier steps first.

Step 1: Van311

Van311 is the City's system for service requests. You can reach it three ways:

• phone 3-1-1 within Vancouver, or 604-873-7000 from outside the city,
• the Van311 app, on iOS and Android, or
• the Van311 website, from any computer.

The City's contact page lists phone hours of 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday, and 8am to 5pm on weekends and holidays. Live chat runs from 9am to 4pm. Language interpretation is available on the 3-1-1 phone line.

The City says Van311 covers more than 50 types of service requests, and you can submit one without an account. An account lets you track your case online. Without one, you can phone 3-1-1 for an update, or search by case number for limited status details. Van311 also takes general feedback, comments and questions.

For police, fire or a medical emergency, the City says to phone 9-1-1.

Keep your case number. You will need it at every later step.

Step 2: the department

If a 311 case does not solve the problem, go to the department that made the decision. The BC Ombudsperson gives this advice for any public body:

• ask to speak with a supervisor or manager,
• explain the problem and the outcome you want,
• write down who you spoke with, when, and what they said,
• keep copies of what you send, and
• ask what review or appeal process exists, and note its deadlines.

Some City decisions carry a legal right of appeal. Section 11 of the Ombudsperson Act says the Ombudsperson cannot investigate a decision that has a legal right of appeal or review to a court or tribunal until that right has been used or its time limit has passed.

Step 3: the BC Ombudsperson

The BC Ombudsperson is an officer of the provincial Legislature, appointed under section 2 of the Ombudsperson Act. It investigates whether public bodies are fair to the people they deal with. The Ombudsperson Act lists the bodies it covers. The list includes municipalities, boards and commissions set up under the Vancouver Charter, and school boards.

The office describes the kinds of complaints it can take: how or why a decision was made, being refused a benefit you believe you are owed, or long delays in getting a service.

It lists what it cannot investigate, including:

• police,
• courts and judges,
• decisions about criminal prosecutions, and
• freedom of information and privacy.

It also stays out of general policy. The office says its role is to check whether government programs are administered in a fair way for the people they affect.

Freedom of information disputes go to the Information and Privacy Commissioner instead. Our guide to requesting City records explains that route.

Try the City first. The Ombudsperson's page for the City of Vancouver tells people to register the complaint with the City through 311 or 604-873-7000. If you think going through the City first is not right in your case, for example because the matter is urgent or you face a barrier such as a disability, the office asks you to contact it directly and explain.

Time limits. Section 13 of the Act lets the Ombudsperson refuse a complaint when the person knew about the problem more than 1 year before complaining. It can also refuse when another remedy exists that the person did not use without a good reason.

How to complain. Section 12 says a complaint must be in writing. The office accepts complaints:

• through its online form,
• by mail, to PO Box 9039, Stn Prov Gov't, Victoria, BC V8W 9A5,
• in person, at 947 Fort Street in Victoria, or
• by phone first for help, at 1-800-567-3247.

Phone hours are 9am to 4pm on weekdays, and 9am to 12:30pm on Wednesdays. Translation is available.

What to have ready. The office asks for:

• your contact information,
• the public body the complaint is about,
• how the problem affects you personally,
• the outcome you hope for,
• the other complaint, review or appeal steps you tried, and the answers you got,
• names and contact details of the people you dealt with,
• the dates of the main events, and
• copies of letters, emails and other documents.

This is where the notes from step 2 matter.

What it can do. Section 23 lets the Ombudsperson tell the City it acted wrongly and recommend a fix: change a decision, correct a delay, give reasons, or change a practice. Under section 25, if the City takes no suitable action, the Ombudsperson can report the matter to the provincial cabinet and then to the Legislative Assembly.

Councillor conduct: the Integrity Commissioner

A complaint about how a councillor or the Mayor behaved is a separate matter. The City sends those to its Integrity Commissioner, who applies the Code of Conduct By-law. Complaints must use the City's online form. Complaints about park commissioners go to the Park Board Integrity Commissioner. Money conflicts that could cost a member the seat go to court instead. Our guide to conflict of interest rules covers both routes and their deadlines.

The City also runs a whistleblowing process for reporting serious wrongdoing involving City resources, assets and programs in confidence.

A quick guide

Contacting councillors in an at-large system

The City says its 10 councillors are elected at large for a 4-year term. Every voter in Vancouver votes for the whole council, so each councillor represents the whole city. You can write to any of them, or to all of them.

The City's councillor page suggests an order:

1. for a service problem, use Van311 first,
2. to comment on a rezoning or development application, use the City's Shape Your City site, and
3. to reach the mayor and council as a group, or to comment on a Council agenda item, use the City's "Contact Mayor and Council" form.

The City says staff read those comments from 8:30am to 5pm on weekdays. Council receives every comment, and in most cases staff reply.

The councillors elected on October 17 take office on the first Monday after November 1, which is November 2, 2026, under section 139 of the Vancouver Charter. Until then, the outgoing council holds office.

For other questions, see our FAQ.

The City of Vancouver and the BC Ombudsperson are the authority on these complaint routes. If anything here disagrees with vancouver.ca or bcombudsperson.ca, their pages are correct.