Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Authority’s decision not to make a £2 refund in relation to the bike hire scheme. This is because there is insufficient evidence of injustice.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, wants a £2 refund because she was unable to return her bike on time because there was no space at the docking station.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we believe the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I read the complaint and the Authority’s response. I considered information about the bike hire scheme. I considered comments Ms X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

Bike hire scheme

4. People can pay for an annual bike hire membership. If the journey is less than 30 minutes there is no additional charge. If the bike is not returned within 30 minutes there is a £2 charge for every 30 minutes.
5. If there is no space to return the bike at the docking station the person can use the terminal to request another 15 minutes to allow them time to find another docking station with free space. If the person returns the bike within the 15 minutes there is no extra charge.

What happened

6. Ms X has an annual membership. She used a bike. When she tried to return the bike she found there were no spaces at the docking station. She found a space after 32 minutes. The Authority charged her £2.
7. Ms X asked for a £2 refund because there had been no spaces. The Authority declined. The Authority explained that it cannot guarantee there will always be a space because it is a user led scheme. It explained that Ms X could have asked for the extra 15 minutes. It said it would not issue a £2 refund because the charge was correct.
8. Ms X says the Authority wrongly charged £2 and she wants a £2 refund.

Assessment

9. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of injustice. Ms X believes the Authority should not have charged her £2 and says it is not her fault that all the docking stations were full. However, a dispute over £2 does not represent a level of injustice that requires an investigation by the Ombudsman.

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Final decision

10. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman