Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Miss B’s complaint that she believes the Council is putting up barriers to the transition to electric vehicles. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making process.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Miss B, complained that she believes the Council is putting up barriers to the transition to electric vehicles. She says the lack of an effective electric vehicle infrastructure and the Council’s failure to help her has caused her stress and affected her income. Miss B has also complained about the way the Council dealt with her complaint.

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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 or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

3. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered the information Miss B provided, the Council’s responses to her complaint and Miss B’s comments on my draft decision.

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What I found

5. Miss B told us she bought an electric taxi in 2018. She says she has lived in a council property for many years and she can usually park directly outside her house. Outside her home under the pavement there is an empty space with a lid on the pavement for access. Miss B told us she wrote to the Council at the time she bought her taxi to see if someone could help her to find a way to charge her taxi from her home. But she says the Council was not interested in finding a solution.
6. Miss B sought help from her MP. The Council agreed to look at whether the empty space under the pavement could be used for recharging Miss B’s vehicle. Miss B says about two months later the Council emailed her saying she could have a six-month trial running a cable with a cover across the pavement. But to do this the Council said she would need to pay about £600 for a highway occupation licence. Miss B says she was quite shocked at this because the Council had not arranged for anyone to look at her situation. She thought there were other options available.
7. A council officer visited Miss B. He told Miss B her proposal for a charging point was a good idea. But the Council subsequently concluded it was not feasible. The Council has accepted, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps it could have done more to manage Miss B’s expectations.
8. In summary the Council’s reasons for not agreeing to a protected charging cable running over the pavement or in a duct under the pavement were:

• public liability
• installation and maintenance costs
• strategic transport policy implications
• precedent and cumulative impact.

9. Later on in 2019 the Council installed three charging points near Miss B’s home. But Miss B says this is not a solution for her. That is because the bays where the Council has put the charging points are not designated for charging electric vehicles only and they are usually not available. Miss B says there are eight people on her street who need to charge their electric vehicles. She says the Council’s recent installation of three lamppost chargers which take up to seven hours to fully charge a vehicle, is not a solution for anyone with a working electric vehicle.
10. Miss B says the Council should be helping residents in any way they can if there is a safe viable solution that enables them to charge their electric vehicles from home. In its final response to Miss B’s complaint the Council said it will take time to reach its goal to install 400 electric vehicle charging points in the borough. So, in the meantime, electric vehicle owners will have to manage with those currently available.
11. Our role is to look at the way the Council reached its decision that Miss B’s proposals were not feasible. This was a judgment for the Council’s officers to reach. The Council must show it has considered relevant matters. It says it is supporting the transition to electric vehicles but this does not necessarily mean it must facilitate the actual proposals Miss B has put forward in this case. There is no indication of fault in the Council’s decision-making process. The Council has recognised the difficulties Miss B faces recharging her vehicle but this has not overridden its reasons for not agreeing to her proposals. We would not investigate a complaint about the way the Council dealt with this complaint when we are not investigating the substantive issue.
12. Miss B says she has tried to get more information in writing about how to proceed if she decides to pay for the necessary construction work. In January 2020 the Council wrote to her to provide further details. The Council said Miss B would need to apply for planning permission and listed building consent. The Council told Miss B it is possible it would refuse planning permission and listed building consent. Also, she would need to apply for consent under section 180 of the Highways Act 1980. The Council said it is unlikely it would consent to her proposed works.

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Final decision

13. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making process.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman