Summary: We will not investigate Mr C’s complaint about the Council not taking action about pavement parking on his local high street. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr C complains the Council is not taking sufficient action about illegal pavement parking on his local high street. Mr C says this is a hazard to pedestrians. Mr C says the bollards put in place by the Council are not sufficient to prevent illegal parking. Mr C would like the Council to put in place continuous metal barriers to address this problem.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr C and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The Council has provided a detailed response to Mr C’s complaint.
6. The Council accepts the bollards it has put in place are being damaged and dislodged by motorists so are not preventing pavement parking. The Council has explained why it cannot install metal railings in this location.
7. The Council says this road has the highest number of Penalty Charge Notices in the Council’s area, and it continues to target this area for parking enforcement. This includes enforcement in the evening, which was one of Mr C’s concerns.
8. The Council says it can take some time for motorists to change their behaviour and it intends to allow its parking team more time to enforce the restrictions before considering the need for any further bollards or barriers.
9. The information indicates the Council is fully aware of the problem of pavement parking in this location and is taking the matter seriously. The Council has explained its approach to this matter and there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation by the Ombudsman.
10. So, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr C’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman