The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s refusal of her application for a parking bay near her home because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify our involvement.
The complaint
Ms X complained about the Council’s refusal of her application for a parking bay near her home. She says she has paid for a parking bay for many years but now has to park on a side street miles from her home, despite having mobility issues.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
After consulting, the Council made changes to the Traffic management Order (TMO) relating to the parking scheme for the estate where Ms X lives in 2024. It sent letters to all residents informing them of the changes.
The Council told us it refused an earlier application from a relative of Ms X because the relative did not live at the same address and so was not eligible for a parking bay there. It says the relative said Ms X was elderly and could not drive.
A further application was made on 24 March 2025. This was rejected because the application was made two months’ after the scheme had gone live. Therefore, the parking bays Ms X previously used were allocated to other applicants.
In its complaint response, the Council confirmed the direct debits for the cost of the parking bays Ms X previously used were cancelled in October 2024.
Based on this, there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to justify further investigation.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman