The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that Mrs X lost the opportunity to pay a penalty charge notice at the discounted rate. This is because Mrs X had the right to ask the court to consider her case.
The complaint
Mrs X complains she did not receive early notification of a bus lane penalty charge notice (PCN). As a result, Mrs X had to pay £99 instead of £30.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Parliament has provided a mechanism for motorists to challenge the enforcement of PCNs if something goes wrong in the procedure, by making a statement to the county court at the Traffic Enforcement Centre. As this is the standard procedure for making such challenges, it is reasonable to expect Mrs X to have used it. For this reason, we will not investigate. That Mrs X chose not to do this but to pay the PCN and challenge it retrospectively does not change this view.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she could reasonably have asked the court to consider her case.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman