LGO raps councils for “unfair” approach to traffic enforcement

Councils in England should do more to make Penalty Charge Notices fairer, the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) has said in a new report analysing complaints received about traffic and parking fines imposed by local authorities.

Common problems identified by the Ombudsman in its report, Fairer Fines, include councils failing to tell people of their appeal rights (including access to an independent parking adjudicator) and not being available to discuss issues people have with the penalty notice.

In addition, local authorities do not always properly consider ‘informal challenges’ to parking penalties, where motorists can appeal against a parking ticket left on a vehicle within 28 days before a formal ‘notice to owner’ is posted to the registered keeper.

The result, the Ombudsman said, was that people are sometimes being treated unfairly and may be paying fines unnecessarily. The LGO’s report provides advice to councils on how they could improve procedures around parking enforcement.

Michael King, Local Government Ombudsman, said: “To help build trust between local authorities and motorists, authorities should provide clear and transparent information, follow correct guidance and listen properly to legitimate concerns. If motorists genuinely feel a parking ticket they’ve received is unfair, they should be aware that they have a legal right to appeal to an independent parking tribunal and the council should not reject valid concerns out of hand.”

Local authorities issue around 10 million parking, bus lane and moving traffic tickets a year – officially known as penalty charge notices (PCNs).

The full report can be downloaded here: http://www.lgo.org.uk/assets/attach/4053/FR%20-%20Parking%20FINAL.pdf