Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the actions of council officers issuing him a fixed penalty notice for riding his bicycle in a prohibited area. This is because there are or were other bodies better placed to consider the issues raised.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains officers working for the Council carried out an unlawful arrest in order to issue him a fixed penalty notice (FPN) for riding his bicycle in a prohibited area. He phoned the Council to discuss the FPN and says he was intimidated into paying the FPN. As a result he lost his right to challenge the FPN and is very upset.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I reviewed the information provided by Mr X comprising his complaint to the Council, the Council’s response and the FPN itself. I shared my draft decision with Mr X and considered his comments.

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What I found

4. Officers working for the Council observed Mr X riding his bicycle in a prohibited area in February 2020. They stopped Mr X but he refused to provide his details so they could issue the FPN. Mr X says other council officers then arrived and stopped him from moving away until a police community support officer (PCSO) arrived about an hour later. Mr X still refused to provide his details so they waited a further 30 minutes for a police constable. Mr X gave the police constable his details and passed them to the council officer who issued him the FPN. Mr X says the council officer copied his details incorrectly onto the FPN but insisted this did not matter. He contacted the Council the following day to pay the FPN to ensure the fine did not increase, however he is unhappy this means he cannot appeal against it.
5. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. The FPN states it offers an “opportunity to discharge any liability to conviction for the… offence by payment of this fixed penalty notice of £75.00 within 14 [days]. If you fail to make payment within 14 days you may be summons to court for the offence… Fixed penalty notices (FPN) are issued as an alternative to being prosecuted for the offence. Paying your FPN discharges your liability.” It goes on to explain how Mr X can pay the FPN.
6. There is no right of appeal against an FPN of this type. By making payment for the FPN Mr X discharged his liability for the offence of riding his bicycle in a prohibited area which meant the Council did not bring proceedings against him. Had he wished to argue against the offence he may have refused to pay and put forward his defence at court.
7. Mr X claims the council officers “unlawfully arrested” him prior to issuing the FPN but their actions were the result of his refusal to provide his details. Had he wished to leave he could have provided the officers with his name, address and date of birth at any time. Whether the officers’ actions amount to a criminal offence is a matter for the police and the fact the police took no action against the officers at the time suggests they were content with their actions. Mr X may however raise the issue with them again if he considers they acted unlawfully.

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Final decision

8. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because there were/are other bodies better placed to consider Mr X’s challenge to the FPN and his concerns about the actions of the Council’s officers.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman