London Borough of Ealing (25 014 083)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 27 Jan 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice because it is reasonable to expect Mrs Y to approach the Traffic Enforcement Centre and the London Tribunals.
The complaint
- Mrs Y complained the Council has wrongly issued a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) to her. Mrs Y says she believes she is being asked to pay a penalty despite having paid for the parking at the time.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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)
- 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)
- London Tribunals considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for London.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information Mrs Y provided and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs Y has a right to submit a late witness statement to the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC), asking it to remove the charge certificate for the PCN. If the TEC accepts Mrs Y’s application it can take the process back to an earlier stage, reducing the amount of the PCN and reinstating Mrs Y’s right of appeal against it to the London Tribunals. Mrs Y can then decide if she wishes to appeal the PCN to the Tribunal or pay the penalty.
- This is often free in the initial stages and reasonable adjustments can be made where necessary for access to the service. Consequently, as Mrs Y has not provided any other reason why she cannot, it is reasonable to expect Mrs Y to use this right to appeal. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs Y’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect Mrs Y to approach the Traffic Enforcement Centre and the London Tribunals.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman