Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Penalty Charge Notices for alleged parking or traffic contraventions because the complaint is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.

The complaint

1. Mr Y says the Council wrongly issued Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) and complains about the Council’s decision to take enforcement action against him. He says this resulted in his car being seized by an enforcement agent and later sold.

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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 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/care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr Y and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr Y says he received ten PCNs between December 2021 and April 2022. In April 2023 he says his car was seized by an enforcement agent over the unpaid PCNs. We will not investigate this complaint. We expect a person to come to us within 12 months of being aware of matters and Mr Y did not come to us until April 2026. This complaint is late, and I see no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.
7. The more time passes between the events and a complaint, the more unlikely it is we can investigate them effectively, gather reliable evidence and reach a sound decision. In older cases we also may not be able to achieve a meaningful remedy because too many circumstances have changed. We are often unable to be able to show why events occurred or understand who was responsible.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because it is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman