Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice for an alleged parking or traffic contravention. The complainant has used the statutory representations and appeals procedure. We will not investigate a complaint about the Council’s complaint handling where we are not investigating the substantive matters.

The complaint

1. Miss X says the Council did not properly consider their representations about a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for an alleged traffic contravention.
2. Miss X also complains about the way the Council dealt with her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes limits on what we can investigate.
4. 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. If the person has already appealed we have no power to investigate. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
5. London Tribunals considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for London, and the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for the rest of England.
6. In R (on application of Milburn) v Local Govt and Social Care Ombudsman & Anr [2023] EWCA Civ 207 the Court said s26(6)(a) of the Local Government Act prevents us from investigating a matter which forms the “main subject or substance” of an appeal to the Tribunal and also “those ancillary matters that may fall to be decided by the Tribunal…such as procedural failings or conduct which is said to be in breach of the [Tribunal] Rules, practice directions or directions or that is said to be unreasonable…”.
7. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

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How I considered this complaint

8. I considered information from the complainant and the Council and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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Final decision

9. We cannot investigate this complaint because the complainant has already used the representations and appeals procedure.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman