The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a moving traffic penalty charge notice as the complainant had the right to ask the court to consider their case.
The complaint
Miss X complains her partner did not receive notice of a penalty charge notice (PCN) for driving in a prohibited street until they received a charge certificate about it. Miss X wants to be able to pay the original PCN fine of £130, not the increased charge certificate amount.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
As the Council explained in its letter of 7 February 2025, there is a procedure in law which provides for the re-issuing of a PCN. The Council explained to access this procedure, the complainant would need to wait for it to issue another notice, called an order for recovery. Once this was issued, the complainant could ask the court at the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) to set back the PCN to the initial stage.
It is reasonable to expect the complainant to take this action as this is the specific recourse provided in law. As such, we will not investigate.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because she/her partner had the right to ask the court to consider their case against the enforcement of the PCN.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman