West Sussex County Council (24 006 692)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 10 Sep 2024
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an unsuccessful application for a disabled parking bay. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
- The complainant, Mr X, complains about the Council’s decision not to provide a disabled parking bay. He has a drive but the family struggles to park as there are two adults with Blue Badges. Mr X wants a parking bay.
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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the correspondence about the parking bay, the parking bay policy and a photograph of Mr X’s drive. I also considered our Assessment Code.
My assessment
- The Council’s policy says a person cannot have a disabled parking bay if they have off-street parking.
- Mr X applied for a disabled parking bay. The Council refused the application because Mr X has a driveway. Mr X appealed and said there are two Blue Badge holders in the family. In response, the Council confirmed he is ineligible for a bay because there is a drive which appears to be big enough for two cars.
- I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The policy says people with access to off-street parking cannot have a bay. I have looked at a photograph of Mr X’s house which shows he has a drive which is long enough for two, and possibly three, cars. Mr X disagrees with the decision but as the Council’s decision reflects the policy there is no reason to start an investigation. We are not an appeal body and we cannot intervene simply because a council makes a decision that someone disagrees with.
Final decision
- We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman