Summary: We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint that the Council failed to meaningfully engage with its Equality Act duties when considering his representations against a Penalty Charge Notice. He should or could have raised them in his appeal to the London Tribunals.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to meaningfully engage with its Equality Act duties when he provided disability-related medical evidence as part of his representations against a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN).
2. He says this caused injuries to his feelings. He wants a number of outcomes including a financial remedy.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

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.
5. We cannot decide if an organisation has breached the Equality Act as this can only be done by the courts. But we can make decisions about whether or not an organisation has properly taken account of an individual’s rights in its treatment of them.

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. Mr X received a PCN. He subsequently appealed it to the London Tribunals who upheld his appeal because the PCN contained the wrong location details.
8. Mr X complained to the Council. He said it failed to meet its Equality Act duties as it did not properly consider the disability-related evidence he provided as part of his representations against the PCN prior to going to the London Tribunals.
9. The law says we cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. Mr X could have raised the matters he complains about to the London Tribunals as part of his appeal.
10. But even if we were not barred from investigating, we would not do so. We cannot decide if an organisation has breached the Equality Act as this can only be done by the courts. And although it is true we can make decisions about whether an organisation has properly taken account of an individual’s rights in its treatment of them, we will not investigate this case. The Council said it took Mr X’s medical evidence into account in his representations and explained why it did not change its view on the issuing of the PCN. The detail the Council provided in its response supports its assertion it properly considered this evidence. And ultimately the appeal was won for reasons unconnected to the medical evidence. There is not enough evidence of fault in how the Council considered its Equality Act duties to justify an investigation.

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Final decision

11. We cannot investigate this complaint because the complainant has already used the representations and appeals procedure.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman