London Borough of Southwark (25 028 032)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 22 Jul 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a resident parking permit. This is because there is not enough evidence the Council is at fault to justify an investigation.
The complaint
- Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of his resident parking permit. He says he was issued with a parking permit, but the Council later decided to cancel the permit. He says this decision is unfair and has affected his livelihood.
- Mr X also complains about the way the Council handled his complaint about the matter.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (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 has singled him out when taking the decision to cancel his parking permit.
- The Council, in its response to Mr X’s complaint, says his vehicle does not meet the criteria and is not eligible for a resident parking permit. This is a decision the Council is entitled to make and is in line with its published Traffic Management Orders. We will not criticise the Council for this decision and there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.
- Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of his complaint. It is not a good use of our resources to investigate how a Council has handled a complaint if the substantive matter does not fall to be investigated. That is the case here.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence the Council is at fault.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman