Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice because the complainant could have followed the statutory process and because the matter is currently being considered in court.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, disputes a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) and says the enforcement officer laughed at him and was abusive. Mr X wants the Council to cancel the fine and all recovery action.

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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 has a right of appeal, reference or review to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Traffic Penalty Tribunal considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for all areas of England outside London.
5. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the letters the Council sent to Mr X about the PCN and his application to the court. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. An enforcement officer placed a PCN on Mr X’s car in May 2023 for parking in a loading bay when there was no sign of loading. Mr X spoke to the enforcement officer and said he was loading; the officer said he had not seen any loading activity told Mr X he could appeal.
8. The Council says Mr X did not get in touch until November 2024. In the interim the Council sent several letters telling Mr X how he could pay or appeal to the tribunal. The Council warned him it would register the debt in court if he did not pay. The Council registered the debt in court and instructed bailiffs.
9. Mr X contacted the Council to dispute the PCN and complain about the officer. He applied to the court for a witness statement and said he did not receive the PCN or Notice to Owner. The Council said it was too late to challenge the PCN and said any complaint about the officer was too old. Mr X says he complained by phone about the officer in May 2023; the Council has no record of any contact from Mr X until November 2024.
10. Mr X owes £425 for the PCN and bailiff fees. The case is on hold while the court considers Mr X’s application for a witness statement. If the court grants a witness statement the case will revert to the Notice to Owner stage and Mr X can pay or appeal. If the court refuses the application the bailiff action will resume.
11. I will not start an investigation because Mr X could have followed the statutory process and appealed to the tribunal. Mr X was aware of the PCN because he queried it with the enforcement officer and the Council sent all the documents it was required to send to the correct address. It is reasonable to expect Mr X to appeal because the tribunal is the appropriate body to consider PCN appeals. If the tribunal agreed Mr X was loading, it had the power to cancel the fine. The case is currently being considered in court and if the court issues a witness statement Mr X will have another chance to pay or appeal.
12. I will not investigate the complaint about the enforcement officer because it is too closely linked to the matters Mr X could have appealed about to the tribunal and because it is a late complaint. Mr X spoke to the officer in May 2023 but he did not complain to us until 2025. I have not seen any good reason to accept a late complaint and, as the bodycam footage is no longer available, it would not be possible to find out what happened.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate this complaint because Mr X could have followed the statutory process and appealed to the tribunal, and because part of the complaint is late.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman