London Borough of Croydon (24 023 228)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Upheld
Decision date : 14 May 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice because the Council will make a symbolic payment to the complainant.
The complaint
- The complainant, Ms X, says the Council did not consider her challenge about a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) and she had to pay £280 to bailiffs. She found this stressful and is worried about the impact on her credit rating.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Ms X challenged a PCN. The Council made a processing error and issued a duplicate PCN which meant it failed to deal with Ms X’s challenge. According to the Council’s systems, which were wrong, Ms X had neither paid nor appealed so the Council registered the debt in court and instructed bailiffs. Ms X paid £280 to the bailiffs and complained.
- The Council realised it had made the error. It cancelled the PCN, recalled the account from the bailiffs and asked the bailiffs to refund the money. The Council apologised. The Council told me the bailiffs have made the refund.
- I asked the Council to make a symbolic payment of £150 in recognition of the stress caused to Ms X by the erroneous bailiff action. The Council agreed. The Council also confirmed that the court order and bailiff action will not have any impact on Ms X’s credit record.
- I will not start an investigation because the Council has provided a satisfactory remedy. In addition to cancelling the PCN, arranging a refund and apologising, it will also make a symbolic payment of £150. This is a satisfactory remedy as it puts Ms X back in the position she was in before the error occurred, and the symbolic payment recognises the stress caused by avoidable bailiff action.
Final decision
- We will not investigate this complaint because the Council has provided a satisfactory remedy.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman