London Borough of Redbridge (25 027 805)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Upheld
Decision date : 17 May 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice for an alleged parking contravention. This is because the Council has already provided a satisfactory remedy and there are no wider public interest issues that justify investigating.
The complaint
- Mr X complains the Council has incorrectly applied a charging certificate fee following his Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) despite appealing to a tribunal. Mr X said this caused him distress.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
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 says the Council issued a Charge Certificate in relation to his PCN despite him having lodged an appeal with the tribunal. This increased the amount owed from £160 to £240. He also says the Council’s online portal continued to display the incorrect higher amount.
- In its complaint response, the Council explained the Charge Certificate had been issued in error before it became aware of Mr X’s tribunal appeal. It said it has since removed the Charge Certificate and reinstated the outstanding balance to £160.
- These actions amount to a satisfactory remedy. Further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Council has provided a satisfactory remedy and there are no wider public interest issues remaining that would justify investigating.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman