Devon County Council (25 014 323)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 10 Feb 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a parking penalty charge notice (PCN). Mr X could reasonably have used his right to appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
The complaint
- Mr X complained about the PCN the Council issued to him. He says the no-parking area where he received the PCN is not clearly marked and the Council should paint the yellow lines in the correct place to clearly define the area. He says this meant he had to pay a penalty charge.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X did not have to pay the penalty charge when he did. If Mr X believed he should not have received a PCN for parking in that place because the yellow line did not properly cover the area, he had the right to appeal the PCN to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. It is reasonable to expect him to have done so. The law provides this route for challenging parking penalties, so we usually expect people to use it. The Tribunal is independent of the Council. It has the expertise to decide if the parking restriction was properly described and the power to quash the PCN if it sees fit. Appealing is relatively straightforward.
- We are not an appeal body. We cannot decide if the PCN issued to Mr X was valid or not.
- Mr X wants the Council to paint yellow lines in what he considers the correct place to fully mark the parking restriction. That point relates closely to the questions of whether the restriction was properly marked and therefore whether the contravention actually occurred. Those were points for the Tribunal to decide.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he could reasonably have used his appeal right.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman