Summary: Mr X complained about how the Council assessed his blue badge applications. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because events occurred too long ago and he could have complained earlier.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about how the Council assessed his blue badge applications. He said this meant the Council rejected his application.

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How I considered this complaint

2. I have considered:
• all the information Mr X provided and discussed the complaint with him; and
• the supporting documents the Council provided.
3. Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and guidance

4. The Department for Transport’s (DfT) Blue Badge Scheme helps people with severe physical mobility problems, or other conditions affecting their mobility, to access goods and services. It does this by allowing them, or their carer, to park near their destination. The scheme gives parking concessions to Blue Badge holders. Councils are responsible for the day-to-day administration and enforcement of the scheme. This includes assessing applicants’ eligibility for the badge.
5. There are two types of eligibility criteria:
• where a person is automatically eligible without further assessment, they will receive a Blue Badge; or
• where a person is eligible subject to further assessment.
6. A person is automatically eligible if they receive the disability benefit Personal Independent Payment (PIP) and when they were assessed for the benefit, they were awarded either:
• Eight or more points under the ‘moving around’ category; or
• Exactly ten points under the ‘planning and following journeys’ category where they are awarded those points because they cannot undertake any journey without it causing overwhelming psychological distress to the claimant.

What happened

7. Mr X applied for a blue badge in mid-May 2022. He completed the online form to say he received PIP. He said he had zero points for ‘moving around’ and ten points for ‘planning and following a journey’. His PIP letter showed he had the ten points because he was unable to undertake any journey because it would cause him overwhelming psychological distress.
8. Mr X submitted a provisional driving licence as his ID. The Council assessed Mr X’s application and found he was automatically eligible for a blue badge but had not submitted a provisional driving licence instead of a full licence. At the end of the month the Council asked Mr X for different ID, but he did not send one.
9. Mr X made a second application for a blue badge in September 2022. Since his May 2022 blue badge application Mr X had appealed to the PIP Tribunal and received a different points award. He completed the online form saying he received twelve points in the ‘moving around’ category. This would make him automatically eligible for a blue badge, so he was not prompted to submit any more information about his needs or any other evidence, other than his benefit letter.
10. The Council considered Mr X’s application and his benefit letter. It noted he did not have twelve points in the ‘moving around’ category. Mr X had twelve points under ‘planning and following a journey’ but this did not make him automatically eligible.
11. The Council considered whether the information Mr X gave made him eligible on non-automatic grounds but concluded it did not. It wrote to Mr X at the end of September 2022 rejecting his application and made him aware of his right to ask for an appeal within four months. Mr X did not respond.

Findings

12. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
13. The Council rejected Mr X’s blue badge applications in May and September 2022 but he did not complain to the Ombudsman until December 2023. I have seen no good reason why Mr X could not have complained to the Ombudsman within twelve months of becoming aware of the application refusals so I cannot consider his complaint.
14. In any event, even if I could investigate, there is no evidence the Council was at fault in how it considered Mr X’s applications. It applied the automatic criteria to Mr X’s May 2022 application, concluded he was eligible for a blue badge and invited him to send different ID so it could issue one. It was open to Mr X to supply this.
15. Mr X made an error in his September 2022 application which made it appear he was automatically eligible. The Council correctly determined he was not and properly considered whether there was other evidence Mr X should have a blue badge as a ‘subject to further assessment’ applicant. It made Mr X aware of his right to appeal its decision, but he did not do so.
16. It is open to Mr X to apply again if he still wants a blue badge.

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Final decision

17. I have ended my investigation. Mr X’s complaint occurred too long ago and he could have complained earlier.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman