Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about parking outside his property. This is because further investigation is unlikely to find evidence of fault in the Councils actions.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains that vehicles park illegally outside his home. He says the Council has not done enough to address the issue despite him reporting it for over three years, and enforcement officers do not patrol frequent enough. He says the situation is causing stress and creating a safety hazard. Mr X wants the Council to increase enforcement patrols and introduce measures to prevent parking.

Back to top

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 or continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

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

Back to top

My assessment

5. Mr X complained about vehicles parking outside his property illegally and creating a nuisance. He requested increased enforcement and suggested that the Council introduce measures, such as planting trees, to restrict parking.
6. The Council explained what actions it can and cannot take. It told Mr X the Borough Council carries out parking enforcement on its behalf, including patrols during operational hours and some out-of-hours visits, It also advised him the County Council, as the highways authority, is responsible for physical highway measures such as tree planting, and advised Mr X to report any issues related to drivers’ behaviour to the police.
7. We will not investigate this complaint because further investigation is unlikely to find evidence of fault. Third parties, not the Council, cause the issues Mr X reports. Even if the Council increased patrols, it could not guarantee this would resolve the problem. The Council cannot provide constant enforcement, and issuing additional penalty charge notices may not prevent further issues.
8. The Council does not have a duty to always enforce parking restrictions or to issue penalty charge notices in every case. We cannot require the Council to do this, introduce additional physical measures, or increase patrols. It is for the Council to decide how to allocate its resources and prioritise enforcement.

Back to top

Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint as further investigation is unlikely to find evidence of fault in the Councils actions.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman