Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a refund of parking charges as there is insufficient injustice arising from it to justify our further involvement.

The complaint

1. Mr X left his car to pay for parking but was issued with a penalty charge notice (PCN) before he returned to his car. Mr X complains the Council refused to cancel the PCN and after he paid it, also refused to refund his £9.20 parking fee that he had paid. Mr X complains the Council’s parking charge schedule is poorly thought out and that it will not engage with him about this. Mr X also complains about the manner he says he was treated by a Council officer in relation to these matters. Mr X wants that individual to be held to account.

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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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
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. When we find fault, we can recommend remedies for significant personal injustice, or to prevent future injustice, caused by that fault. We look at organisational fault, not individual professional competence. Decisions about individual’s fitness to practise or work are for the organisations concerned, and for professional regulators, not the Ombudsman. (Local Government Act 1974, s26(1) and s26A(1) as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. I recognise that Mr X feels he has been treated unfairly as he says he paid a PCN and a parking charge for the same period. We will not investigate, however. This is because the Council’s refusal to refund Mr X £9.20 does not represent a level of loss or harm that would warrant our further involvement. While Mr X has not specifically complained to us about the PCN, it was open to him to follow the appeal procedure provided in law, had he wished to challenge it.
8. The Council is entitled to decide its own scheme of parking charges and it is unlikely we could achieve any meaningful outcome by investigating this aspect of Mr X’s complaints. Additionally, while I recognise Mr X is unhappy the Council will not discuss this matter with him, this does not cause him a level of injustice that would justify our involvement.
9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about officer conduct as we cannot achieve the outcome he seeks. We cannot impose sanctions on individual Council staff members.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient injustice arising from it to warrant out further involvement. We also cannot achieve the outcome he seeks.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman