Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a penalty charge notice. This is because it would be reasonable for Mrs X to apply to the Traffic Enforcement Centre at Northampton County Court to challenge the Council’s escalation of the case.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mrs X, complains the Council failed to acknowledge or respond to her challenges and representations against a penalty charge notice (PCN).

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)
4. The Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) is part of Northampton County Court. It considers applications from local authorities to pursue payment of unpaid PCNs and from motorists to challenge local authorities’ pursuit of unpaid PCNs.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

The statutory process

6. There is a set procedure councils must follow when pursuing PCNs for parking contraventions and handling appeals against them. When a council issues a PCN the motorist has 28 days to pay the penalty charge or appeal; appeals at this stage are known as ‘informal challenges’.
7. If the motorist submits an informal challenge to a PCN and the Council decides not to accept them, it will write to the motorist and explain why. If the motorist accepts the Council’s reasons they may pay the PCN; if not, they may wait for a ‘notice to owner’. This provides a further opportunity for the owner of the vehicle to pay the charge or make ‘formal representations’ against the PCN. If the council rejects the motorist’s formal representations the motorist may appeal to London Tribunals.
8. If the motorist does not pay or make formal representations the council will issue a charge certificate, increasing the amount payable by 50%. It may then apply to the TEC at Northampton County Court to register the debt, before instructing enforcement agents (bailiffs) to recover it.

Mrs X’s case

9. Mrs X says she informally challenged the PCN but did not receive a response. She also says she has received no response to her formal representations against the PCN and the Council has now issued a charge certificate. She confirms the PCN remains unpaid and she wants the Council to put any further action on hold while we consider her complaint.
10. However, because Mrs X did not receive a response to her formal representations she may wait for the Council to register the case with the TEC and apply to challenge its escalation of the case by making a witness statement or statutory declaration. If the TEC accepts Mrs X’s application it may order the Council to take the process back to an earlier stage, reducing the amount of the PCN and reinstating Mrs X’s right of appeal. While the TEC considers Mrs X’s application the Council must put any further recovery action on hold.
11. This process has been specifically designed to deal with issues such as Mrs X’s and the TEC’s decisions are binding on both parties. I have seen nothing to suggest it would not be reasonable for Mrs X to use it and I will not therefore exercise my discretion to investigate further.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it would be reasonable for Mrs X to wait for the Council to register the case with the TEC and apply to make a witness statement/statutory declaration.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman