• I RECENTLY received a letter from Camden Council about the annual gas safety check for my flat. I wrote back to the name and address on the letter, offering an appointment which was convenient for me.

There was no reply; but I got a further letter from the same name and address, additionally threatening legal action if I failed to respond. I wrote back again, this time paying the Post Office extra to get a record of the delivery.

When I tried to check the proof of delivery, Royal Mail told me that they hadn’t been able to deliver the letter because there was no such person at that address, and they were returning the letter to me.

So is Camden Council now threatening tenants with legal action if they fail to do something that it is not in fact possible to do? And just how can I respond to a non-existent person?

I once spent several bemused hours visiting the Kafka Museum in Prague. Thanks to Camden Council, what I experienced there now makes more sense.

ALBERT BEALE
Museum Chambers
Little Russell Street, WC1