Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about incorrect information the Council gave him about a Resident Parking Zone (RPZ) in 2020. This is because the courts are better placed to consider his complaint and an investigation by us would be unlikely to achieve anything more.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council gave him incorrect information about parking restrictions outside his home in 2020.
2. He says he relied on this information when deciding to purchase his house, has since purchased parking permits which were not needed, and the lack of parking restrictions devalues his property.
3. He wants the Council to pay compensation for the loss in his property’s value.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
5. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Mr X claims the Council is responsible for giving him incorrect information which he relied on to help him decide whether to purchase his property. He says because this information was incorrect, his house may be worth less than what he expected.
9. We cannot establish whether any incorrect information provided by the Council during his property purchase means it is liable for a decrease in the resale value of Mr X’s home. We also do not have the power to award compensation. Only a court would have the power to determine whether the Council is liable for any losses and to award compensation if it saw fit.
10. In its complaint response, the Council accepted it had provided him with incorrect information in 2020 and stated this was a genuine mistake. It offered to refund the cost of parking permits Mr X has bought since moving into his home. It has agreed to put training in place so that similar issues do not arise in future. These are appropriate actions in response to Mr X’s complaint. An investigation would be unlikely to achieve anything more.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman