Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the Council’s refusal to accept payment for a penalty charge notice at the discounted rate of £65 or to allow her to pay by instalments. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss X, complains the Council has refused to allow her to pay a penalty charge notice (PCN) at the original discounted rate following an unsuccessful appeal. She also complains the Council has declined her request for a payment plan to pay the PCN by instalments.

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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 effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Miss X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. The discounted rate for paying a PCN is valid only for the first 14 days. Some councils will re-offer the discount in the event the motorist makes representations against the PCN during this time and if it refuses their representations. But there is no requirement for councils to allow a motorist the opportunity to pay at the discounted rate after an unsuccessful appeal to an Adjudicator.
5. It is therefore not fault for the Council to decline Miss X’s request to pay the discounted rate after the Adjudicator refused her appeal and we will not therefore investigate this issue further.
6. Miss X says she cannot pay the full amount owed and has asked the Council to agree a payment plan for her to pay the PCN off over time. The Council declined this request but agreed to put the case on hold for six weeks to give her additional time to pay. It also explained it could extend the hold if Miss X made payments towards the PCN during the six-week hold.
7. There is no requirement for the Council to agree to Miss X’s request to enter into a payment plan at this stage. The Council’s offer provides Miss X additional time to pay the PCN with the possibility of more time if she makes payments towards the amount owed. It is generous in the circumstances and there is not enough evidence of fault to warrant further investigation.
8. Miss X may either make payments during the hold period and ask the Council to extend the period of the hold or she may wait for the Council to register the unpaid PCN as a debt with the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC). Once the PCN is registered with the TEC the Council will refer the matter to enforcement agents (bailiffs) and they will contact Miss X to arrange payment. At that stage Miss X may ask to enter into a formal payment arrangement with the bailiffs and the bailiffs must consider this request. In the event Miss X cannot pay the PCN at the rate suggested she may need to provide evidence of her finances in order to agree a lower amount which she would find affordable.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman