Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s refusal to issue a partial refund after it cancelled a parking permit. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about the Council’s decision to cancel his parking permit and refusal to pay any refund for the remaining period. He says he should be re-imbursed for the unused portion of the permit.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council. I have also considered the Council’s perking permit scheme conditions.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

5. Mr X says he applied for a resident’s parking permit for his camper van in 2022 and his application was successful. On three subsequent renewals the Council issued a new permit but in 2026 the permit was withdrawn two months after it was issued. The Council says that this is because the dimensions which Mr X had provided with his original application were incorrect and when an enforcement officer checked the vehicle at the roadside it was found to exceed the maximum dimensions allowed for a permit.
6. Mr X says the Council created a legitimate expectation that the vehicle was eligible for a permit when it renewed the previous years’ applications.
7. The Council’s terms and conditions for permits sets out the maximum dimensions for camper vans when the application is made. Mr X provided incorrect information and as applications are taken on trust that the applicant has honestly and accurately provided data for approval. Mr X’s vehicle was never compliant and the Council was misled by the incorrect information.
8. The Council’s terms and conditions also state that: “11.3 Failure to adhere to the terms and conditions may result in the cancellation of your permit without a refund. Additionally, future applications may be rejected, and you may incur Penalty Charge Notices.”
9. Mr X’s vehicle did not meet the conditions and he did not provide any corrections about its size in years following the original approval. There is no requirement for the Council to provide a refund now.
10. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether someone disagrees with the decision the organisation made.

Back to top

Final decision

11. We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s refusal to issue a partial refund after it cancelled a parking permit. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman