Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice and the actions of an enforcement agency. This is because the complainant can follow the statutory process.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Miss X, complains the Council failed to send any information about a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN). She also complains about the actions of the enforcement agency instructed by the Council to collect the debt.

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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 an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A (6), as amended)
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Traffic Penalty Tribunal considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for all areas of England outside London.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered the information provided by Miss X and discussed the complaint with her.

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What I found

6. There is a set procedure councils must follow when pursuing PCNs for parking contraventions and handling appeals against them. When a council issues a PCN the motorist has 28 days to pay the penalty charge or appeal; appeals at this stage are known as ‘informal challenges’.
7. If the motorist submits an informal challenge to a PCN and the Council decides not to accept them, it will write to the motorist and explain why. If the motorist accepts the Council’s reasons, they may pay the PCN; if not, they may wait for a ‘notice to owner’. This provides a further opportunity for the owner of the vehicle to pay the charge or make ‘formal representations’ against the PCN. If the council rejects the motorist’s formal representations the motorist may appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
8. If the motorist does not pay or make formal representations the council will issue a charge certificate, increasing the amount payable by 50%. It may then apply to the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) at Northampton County Court to register the debt, before instructing enforcement agents (bailiffs) to recover it.
9. Miss X says she did not receive the Council’s correspondence, including the Notice to Owner. She says she first found out the PCN was still outstanding when the Council’s enforcement agents contacted her.
10. If Miss X wishes to challenge the Council’s escalation of the case it would be reasonable for her to apply to the TEC to make a late witness statement. If the TEC accepts her application it can order the Council to take the process back to an earlier stage, removing the additional charges and reinstating her right of appeal against the PCN. While the TEC considers Miss X’s application the Council’s enforcement agents must put further action on hold.
11. I have seen nothing to suggest it would not be reasonable for Miss X to use the process set out above and I therefore do not intend to exercise the Ombudsman’s discretion to investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

12. I will not investigate this complaint. This is because it would be reasonable for Miss X to apply to the TEC to make a late witness statement.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman