Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about vehicles parking on the verge outside her property. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to justify investigation and any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council failed to consider or implement measures to prevent vehicles parking on the grass verge outside her property, which was damaging the grass.
2. Mrs X said this issue caused emotional distress and time and took significant time to bring her complaint to the Council. She wanted the council to reassess its decision, provide a clear justification if such measures were refused, and consider the time and effort it had taken her to pursue her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X complained to the Council about vehicles parking on the grass verge outside her property. She said this was affecting her enjoyment of her property and could potentially affect its value.
7. The Council responded to Mrs X’s complaint and acknowledged her concerns. It explained it was sympathetic to the issues she raised. However, vehicles were legally allowed to park on and drive over the verge and there were no specific restrictions in existence at the location to protect the verges from damage.
8. The Council also said that whilst its budget is limited in such matters, it would arrange for increased patrols by its enforcement team in Mrs X’s area. It advised her to report any dangerous parking matters to the police.
9. The evidence shows that the Council considered Mrs X’s complaint, explained its limitations regarding these matters and took reasonable action within its powers to mitigate the impact on Mrs X.
10. We will not investigate this matter as there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to warrant investigation.
11. In any event, we will not normally investigate a complaint unless there is good reason to believe that the complainant has suffered significant personal injustice as a direct result of the actions or inaction of the Council. This means we will normally not investigate a complaint where:

• The alleged loss or injustice is not a serious or significant matter; or
• The complainant has suffered significant personal injustice, distress and loss, but those events cannot be shown to be directly the result of the actions or omissions of the Council.

12. In these circumstances, Mrs X has said she was concerned the issue might affect the value of her property. However, she has not indicated that she is attempting to sell her property, and any alleged financial injustice is hypothetical. It would also be unlikely that any de-valuation of Mrs X’s property would be as a direct result of actions by the Council.
13. Regarding Mrs X’s comments about the significant time it took to raise her complaint to the Council. I have not seen evidence of any significant delay or fault in how the Council handled Mrs X’s complaint to warrant investigation. In any event, it is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaints procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to justify investigation and any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman