Summary: Mrs X complained the Council’s decision to refuse her application to renew her residential parking permit is unfair. She also complained the Council did not tell her it issued her previous permit discretionarily. We found the Council did not explain it issued Mrs X’s previous permit discretionarily. This is fault which has caused Mrs X uncertainty. The Council agreed to apologise and make a payment in recognition of the injustice caused to her. We did not find fault on other parts of the complaint.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council’s decision not to issue her with a residential parking permit is unfair. She also complained the Council did not explain it issued her previous permit on a discretionary basis. Mrs X stated if she had known this she would have moved or made changes to her business.
2. Mrs X stated the Council’s decision has caused her frustration and financial disadvantage.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. As part of my investigation I have:
• considered Mrs X’s complaint and invited her to discuss it with me;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered its reply;
• considered the relevant council policy and our Guidance on Remedies; and
• set out my initial thoughts on the complaint in a draft decision statement and invited Mrs X and the Council to comment.

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What I found

6. This policy explains the criteria an applicant must meet when applying for or renewing a residential parking permit.
7. It says applicants must provide one of the following documents with their application :
• motor insurance schedule/statement of fact
• lease or hire agreement
• signed company letter on official headed paper stating the vehicle is kept and used by the applicant at their home address.
8. Only one residential parking permit will be issued to each qualifying resident.

What happened

9. What follows is a chronology of key events. It does not show everything that has happened.
10. Mrs X lives with her husband, Mr X, in road where the Council uses a residents parking scheme. They have a car for personal use and another vehicle for their business.
11. Before September 2022 the Council allowed applicants to use a Vehicle Registration Document (known as a VC5) to support their application for a residential parking permit.
12. In September 2022 the Council approved new criteria for approving residential parking permits. The new criteria did not allow applicants to use a VC5 to support their application.
13. In July 2023 Mrs X applied to renew the residential parking permit for her business vehicle. She provided a VC5 to support her renewal.
14. The Council were still introducing the new criteria. It was updating its software and resident’s portal service to reflect the changes. Therefore the Council were discretionarily accepting VC5 document in support of applications.
15. The Council issued Mrs X with residential parking permit. The Council did not tell her it had issued the permit on a discretionary basis.
16. In late July the Council completed its transition to the new criteria.
17. In June 2024 Mrs X applied to renew her residential parking permit for her business vehicle. She did not include the necessary supporting documents. The Council told Mrs X she had not done so.
18. Mrs X told the Council she did not have the documents it needs. She explained she does not drive and so the documents it needs are in her husband’s name. Mr X cannot apply for a permit for their business vehicle because the Council has issued him with a parking permit for their other vehicle.
19. The Council rejected Mrs X’s application because she did not meet the criteria.
20. Unhappy with the Council’s decision Mrs X complained at both stages of the Council’s complaints procedure. She complained the Council did not tell her it issued her previous permit on a discretionary basis. She said if it had told her she would have been able to make changes to her business or move. She said business and trading parking permits are significantly more expensive and would put a strain on her finances.
21. The Council’s replies reiterate the previous permit was issued on a discretionary basis. It said it cannot issue Mrs X with a renewal because her application does not meet the criteria. It suggested Mrs X’s husband could apply for a business or trader permit for their business vehicle.
22. Mrs X remained unhappy and complained to the Ombudsman.
23. We made enquiries of the Council. In its response to us it:
• said there is no record it told Mrs X her previous permit was issued on a discretionary basis.
• reiterated Mrs X ‘s application did not meet the criteria and so it was rejected; and
• confirmed the cost of a residential parking permit is £284.70 per year. A business parking permit costs £832.20 per year and a traders' permit costs £1492.85 for a year.

Finding

24. The Council has correctly applied its parking permit criteria to Mrs X’s application of June 2024. The criteria do not allow a VC5 document to be used and so there are no grounds to challenge its decision to reject her application.
25. The Council did not tell Mrs X it issued her previous permit on a discretionary basis. It should have done so given the new criteria was approved and due to be fully implemented imminently.
26. I note the Council was issuing permits on a discretionary basis because there was conflicting information available to residents, such as on its residents’ portal. So applicants were not aware of the changes. Telling Mrs X her permit was issued discretionarily means she would have known about the criteria changes before applying in 2024.
27. Mrs X says she would have made changes to her business or considered moving if she had known about the criteria changes. I agree Mrs X would have had opportunity to do so, if the Council had explained the reasons for issuing her previous permit. Its failure to do so has caused her uncertainty and frustration.

Agreed action

28. Within one month of my final decision the Council will:
• send a written apology to Mrs X .We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The organisation should consider this guidance in making the apology I have recommended in my findings.
• make Mrs X a payment of £150 in recognition of the uncertainty caused to her because the Council did not explain it issued her previous permit on a discretionary basis.
29. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

30. I have completed my investigation and found the Council was at fault which caused Mrs X injustice. The Council has agreed to the above actions to remedy the injustice caused.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman