The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a penalty charge notice as it is reasonable to expect Miss X to challenge it using the statutory appeal procedure available to her.
The complaint
Miss X complains the Council has not cancelled a penalty charge notice (PCN) it issued to her despite her explaining the mistake she made due to what Miss X says was inadequate signage in the car park where she parked. Miss X wants the signage to be improved.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss X had the right to appeal against the PCN, ultimately to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal (TPT) where independent adjudicators would have considered her case about the signage. It is reasonable to expect Miss X to have made such an appeal and so we will not investigate.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect Miss X to have appealed against the PCN, using the statutory procedure provided by Parliament.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman