Summary: We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice he received for an alleged parking contravention. This is because it was reasonable for Mr B to put in an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.

The complaint

1. Mr B complains the Council wrongly issued him with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for not parking within a marked parking bay in a car park. Mr B says the markings are not clear and he considers the Council is deliberately not maintaining the parking bay markings in this location to obtain revenue. Mr B would like the Council to reimburse motorists who have been issued PCNs in this location and to re-paint the bay markings.

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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 Act 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.

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. A motorist may pay a PCN to cancel it. Or, the motorist may follow the statutory representations and appeals process to challenge a PCN. This involves the motorist making formal representations to the local authority. If the local authority rejects these representations, the motorist may put in an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal (for authorities outside London). A motorist cannot pay a PCN and use this appeal process.
8. The Tribunal is independent and has the power to cancel a PCN. The process is free to use and relatively straightforward. We generally expect motorists to use this process if they consider a PCN was wrongly issued.
9. Mr B paid this PCN which cancelled it.
10. Rather than pay this PCN, Mr B could have challenged it by using this representations and appeal process. I find it was reasonable for Mr B to do this. The Tribunal was in the best position to decide if this PCN was correctly issued by the Council including consideration of Mr B’s concerns about the parking bay markings in this location.
11. So, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because it was reasonable for him to put in an appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman