Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Penalty Charge Notices. This is because it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to appeal the PCNs to the London Tribunals.

The complaint

1. Mr Y complains the Council has wrongly issued Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) to him for a car he no longer owns. He says the Council has refused to accept the evidence of the sale of the vehicle and have continue to pursue payment for the PCN incurred by the new owner.
2. Mr Y says this has caused him upset, worry and frustration as he is not liable for the PCNs as he had already sold the vehicle when the PCNs were issued.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. 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)
5. London Tribunals (previously known as the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service) considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for London.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information Mr Y provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mr Y sold his car in early February 2022. The Council then issued several PCNs to Mr Y. Mr Y contacted the Council in March to say he was not responsible for the PCNs as he no longer owned the car when the PCNs were incurred. He provided a copy of his application to the DVLA for the vehicle ownership to be transferred on the V5 document to confirm this.
8. The Council told Mr Y at the end of March this evidence was not sufficient for it to cancel the PCNs as this did not include an exact date of when the car was sold. It asked Mr Y to provide a confirmation letter from the DVLA showing he was no longer the owner of the car.
9. Mr Y says he continued to receive letters about the PCNs from the Council containing charge certificates for the PCNs and wrote to the Council to say he no longer owned the vehicle in March and April before contacting us. Mr Y says he is now receiving letters which threaten him with legal action and bailiffs to recover the funds which he says he does not owe.

Analysis

10. While Mr Y says he did not own the car at the time the PCNs were incurred, to date he has not provided evidence which has satisfied the Council of when he sold the vehicle and stopped being the owner or registered keeper of the vehicle. The Council explained this to Mr Y in its email in late March 2021 and asked Mr Y to provide the necessary evidence. Consequently, it has pursued the unpaid penalties.
11. 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.
12. Mr Y has a right to submit a statutory declaration to the Traffic Enforcement Centre, asking it to remove the charge certificate for the PCN. Mr Y can apply to the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) to make a late statutory declaration. If the TEC accepts Mr Y’s application it can take the process back to an earlier stage, reducing the amount of the PCN and reinstating Mr Y’s right of appeal against it to the Council initially and then the London Tribunals. Mr Y can then appeal the PCN. One of the grounds of appeal would be that Mr Y did not own the car at the time the PCNs were incurred.
13. An appeal to the tribunal is often free in the initial stages and reasonable adjustments can be made where necessary for access to the service. Consequently, as Mr Y has not provided any other reason why he cannot, it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to use his right to appeal. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect Mr Y to appeal to the London Tribunals.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman