London Borough of Havering (25 021 168)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 06 Feb 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s issue and handling of two penalty charge notices. This is because it would have been reasonable for Mr X to appeal to London Tribunals.
The complaint
- Mr X complains about two penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued by the Council. He says the Council failed to provide evidence of the contraventions and refused to cancel the PCNs. He also complains the Council altered the details of one of the contraventions.
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)
- London Tribunals considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for London.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- If Mr X disputed the PCNs and felt the lack of evidence provided by the Council undermined their validity, it would have been reasonable for him to appeal to London Tribunals.
- Mr X could have appealed on the grounds the contravention did not occur, presenting his argument that the Council had failed to provide any evidence to show it did, and in the event the Adjudicator accepted his argument they could have cancelled the PCNs. We do not provide an alternative to the appeals process and have no power to cancel PCNs. I have seen no good reasons why Mr X could not use his right of appeal and I will not therefore exercise our discretion to investigate his complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it would have been reasonable for Mr X to appeal to London Tribunals.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman