Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of a Penalty Charge Notice for an alleged parking contravention. Any injustice Miss X experienced is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained about a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) she received for an alleged parking contravention.
2. Miss X said this caused distress.
3. Miss X paid the required fee but wants the Council to reconsider the PCN.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Miss X.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. The Council issued Miss X with a PCN for parking in a blue badge bay without a blue badge on display. Miss X paid the penalty charge at the discounted rate of £35.
8. Miss X made representations to the Council about this, saying the blue badge had fell off the dashboard. Miss X also told the Council she had been advised by an unidentified Council officer she could use her father’s blue badge to park as she was visiting the area to deal with her father’s affairs.
9. The Council said as Miss X could not identify the Council officer who provided advice to her, it would not consider her representations further.
10. Our role is to consider complaints where the person bringing the complaint has suffered significant personal injustice as a direct result of the actions or inactions of the organisation. This means we will normally only investigate a complaint where the complainant has suffered a serious loss, harm or distress as a direct result of faults or failures. We will not normally investigate a complaint where the alleged loss or injustice is not a serious or significant matter.
11. We will not investigate this complaint. Any injustice Miss X has experienced is not significant enough to justify our involvement.
12. Additionally, Miss X had a right of appeal against the PCN she received. It was reasonable to expect Miss X to challenge the PCN and ultimately appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. The Council’s complaints procedure does not provide an alternative to this.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because any injustice she experienced is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman