London Borough of Southwark (21 015 920)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 09 Mar 2022
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about penalty charge notices as Ms X appealed against them to London Tribunals. Ms X’s complaint about a refund for a parking permit is made late to us and there are not good reasons to investigate now.
The complaint
- Ms X complains about two penalty charge notices (PCNs) the Council issued to her for parking without a valid permit. Ms X also complains the Council has refused to refund money she paid for a permit she was unable to use due to Covid-19 lockdowns.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
- We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
- I sent my draft decision on the complaint to Ms X and have considered any comments she made in response before reaching this final decision.
My assessment
- Ms X complained to London Tribunals against the PCNs. As per paragraph three, this means we now have no legal remit to investigate Ms X’s complaint about the PCNs.
- Ms X’s complaint about the permit refund is made late to us as, as per paragraph two, as Ms X knew about the Council’s refusal to make a refund in mid 2020. It is reasonable to expect Ms X to have complained to us about this within 12 months of knowing about the problem and as such, I do not consider there are good reason to investigate now.
Final decision
- My decision is we cannot/should not investigate this complaint. Ms X’s complaint about the PCNs is no longer within our remit as she used her right of appeal to a tribunal about these. Ms X’s complaint about a permit refund is made late and there are not good reasons to investigate now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman