Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s actions relating to the enforcement of a Penalty Charge Notice. The Council has already investigated the matter and further investigation by us would not lead to a different outcome for X.

The complaint

1. X complained the Council was at fault because it denied them their right to appeal a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN), because it did not send them a Notice to Owner. X also said it continued to enforce against the PCN despite knowing it was outside the 6-month time limit for taking formal action.
2. X said the Council’s actions has caused them significant distress, and they needlessly had challenge liability for a fine of £160, despite it not being enforceable.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

5. The Council issued X with a PCN in mid-2025. X wrote back to the Council about this matter and there was a period of written exchanges between X and the Council. In December 2025, X paid the outstanding PCN.
6. During the subsequent complaint correspondence, the Council accepted there had been process errors in the way the Council followed the enforcement procedures. It gave X an explanation for how this occurred. It also acknowledged the PCN had been allowed to lapse, to the point where the Council was no longer able to enforce the PCN.
7. The Council upheld X’s main complaints about the enforcement procedures and apologised for its poor service. It discharged their liability for the £160 fine. It also set out actions it had put in place, to prevent a recurrence of these issues.
8. Given the actions the Council has taken to resolve X’s complaint I will not investigate, because it is not proportionate to do so, because further investigation is unlikely to lead to any different outcome for X.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate X’s complaint because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman