Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council not fairly considering Mrs X’s appeal against the refusal of her dropped kerb application. This is because any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, and in any event there is insufficient evidence of fault.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains that the Council has not fairly considered her appeal against the refusal of the application she submitted for a dropped kerb. She said this could result in a dangerous parking situation. Mrs X wants the Council to reconsider its decision.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X has two existing vehicle accesses to her property, with six dropped kerbs in total. She applied for an additional dropped kerb so she could park another vehicle on her driveway. The Council refused the application. It said further works would result in the loss of on-street parking and would not comply with its policy. It also said its policy only allows an existing dropped kerb to be extended to a maximum of four flat kerbs. Mrs X appealed and raised concerns about road safety, including vehicles speeding near her property.
6. We do not investigate all complaints we receive. In deciding whether to investigate we need to consider various tests. These include the alleged injustice to the person complaining. We will normally only investigate a complaint where:
• the complainant has suffered serious loss, harm, or distress as a direct result of faults or failures by the service provider, or
• there are continuous and ongoing instances of a lower-level injustice that remain unresolved over a long period of time.
7. Mrs X’s concerns about safety do not meet this threshold. In any event, there is insufficient evidence of fault as the Council has applied its policy.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman