London Borough of Tower Hamlets (25 029 800)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 26 Mar 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate how the Council dealt with Mrs X’s complaint about its handling of penalty charge notices it had issued to her. This is because Mrs X’s complaint is made late to us and there are not good reasons to investigate now.
The complaint
- Mrs X complains the Council refused to respond to her complaint about how it considered the representations she made against two parking penalty charge notices (PCNs) it had issued to her. Mrs X says this caused her distress.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs X was aware in December 2024 that the Council refused to deal with her complaint, saying that it was a matter for the statutory PCN appeal process.
- Mrs X complained to us in March 2026 and as not within a year of her knowing about the problem, the complaint is made late.
- I recognise Mrs X has experienced health issues in the intervening period, but at the time, Mrs X was in contact with the Council on a number of occasions, and was aware of our existence, as referenced in one of her emails to the Council. I consider therefore that it is reasonable to expect Mrs X to have complained to us once she was aware of the Council’s position, and as such, I do not consider there are good reasons for us to investigate now.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because her complaint is made late and I do not consider there are good reasons for us to investigate now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman