The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the removal of designated disabled parking bays on Miss X’s street. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.
The complaint
Miss x complained about the Council’s refusal to remove three disabled parking bays from the street where she lives. She says the original permit holders have died or moved and the bays take up parking space in an area where it is already scarce.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether an organisation’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) The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with 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))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss X says there are three parking bays designated for disabled users on her street which no longer are required. She says she received a penalty notice for parking in one in 2021 and other residents have also been subject to penalties. She believes residents are being unfairly enforced against and that the bays should be removed to increase on-street parking.
The Council says the bays were provided as part of its duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for disabled persons in its area. The bays are enforceable because they were created by traffic regulation order and that the permits for them have been transferred to other blue badge holders in the neighbourhood and remain valid.
We may not question the merits of the decision the Council has made or offer any opinion on whether or not we agree with the judgment of the Councils’ officers or members. This means we will not intervene in disagreements about the merits of decisions. In this case the bays are correctly marked and signed and are enforceable under an existing traffic order. There is no requirement for a highway authority to remove disabled parking bays and no statutory right to park in a particular area.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint about the removal of designated disabled parking bays on Miss X’s street. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman