The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a penalty charge notice. This is because it would be reasonable for Mr X to apply to the court to take the process back to an earlier stage.
The complaint
Mr X complains he did not receive a penalty charge notice (PCN) issued by the Council as he was away from the country. He only became aware of the PCN later, and the Council has now instructed enforcement agents to recover payment from him.
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) The Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) is part of Northampton County Court. It considers applications from local authorities to pursue payment of unpaid PCNs and from motorists to challenge local authorities’ pursuit of unpaid PCNs.
We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Because Mr X did not receive the initial PCN he may apply to the TEC to make a late witness statement/statutory declaration. If the TEC accepts his application it may order the Council to take the process back to an earlier stage, reducing the amount of the PCN and removing the basis for any additional charges or fees. If it refuses his application Mr X may apply for a review of the decision.
This process exists specifically to deal with issues such as the one Mr X has raised and I have seen nothing to show it would be unreasonable to expect him to use it.
We cannot in any event consider any complaint about the Council registering the unpaid PCN as a debt with the court as this concerns the start of court action and the exclusion set out at Paragraph 5 therefore applies.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it would be reasonable for Mr X to apply to the TEC to make a late witness statement/statutory declaration.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman