Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the service of a penalty charge notice as there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council or fault causing injustice.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains he was refused the right to have a penalty charge notice (PCN) sent to him by post and the PCN issued to him was thrown into his car by the enforcement officer. Mr X wants the Council to send PCNs in the post when someone asks them to do so.

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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 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 it is unlikely we will find fault or fault causing a significant injustice (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The refusal of the Council’s enforcement officer to meet Mr X’s preference to have a PCN delivered to him by post does not represent a level of injustice that would justify our further action. In addition, Mr X has sent us the Council’s response to his complaint and from this, it also seems unlikely we would find fault in respect of this. The Council’s account indicates the PCN was properly served at the time of the contravention, that is, affixed to Mr X’s car, and would not therefore have met the criteria to be sent by post.

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Final decision

6. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is unlikely we will find fault or fault causing him a serious injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman