Birmingham City Council (23 016 637)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 13 Feb 2024
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice because Mr Y has already sought a remedy through a court or tribunal.
The complaint
- Mr Y complained the Council wrongly said he had made representations against a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) too late. Mr Y says this has meant he had to pay more than £500 for the penalty and costs.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The courts have said that where someone has sought a remedy by way of proceedings in any court of law or a tribunal, we cannot investigate. This is the case even if the appeal did not or could not provide a complete remedy for all the injustice claimed. (R v The Commissioner for Local Administration ex parte PH (1999) EHCA Civ 916) (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information Mr Y provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr Y has explained to us that he made representations to the Council against a PCN but these were rejected by the Council as they were not received by the Council within 28 days. Mr Y says he appealed to the Traffic Enforcement Centre but his appeal was rejected.
- As Mr Y has appealed the PCN to the Traffic Enforcement Centre, based at Northampton County Court, we cannot by law investigate his complaint. Consequently, we will not investigate.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because he has already sought a remedy through a court or tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman