Summary: We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice for an alleged parking contravention. Miss X has used the statutory representations and appeals procedure.

The complaint

1. Miss X’s representative says the Council did not properly consider their representations about a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) for an alleged parking contravention.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes limits on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. We also cannot investigate a complaint if in doing so we would overlap with the role of a tribunal to decide something which has been or could have been referred to it to resolve using its own powers. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. London Tribunals considers parking and moving traffic offence appeals for London, and the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for the rest of England.

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How I considered this complaint

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

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Final decision

6. We cannot investigate this complaint because Miss X has already used the representations and appeals procedure.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman