The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to introduce a permit scheme for its waste and recycling sites. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.
The complaint
Mr B complains the Council now requires all van owners to apply for a permit to use the Council’s waste and recycling centres. Mr B says there is a fee for this permit and it only allows up to 12 visits per year. Mr B considers this scheme discriminates against van owners, like himself, who only use their van for non-commercial purposes.
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. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr B and information on the Council’s website about its waste and recycling centres.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council has decided to introduce a permit scheme for certain vehicles, including vans, to use the Council’s waste and recycling centres. The Council says this is to try to prevent the illegal deposit of commercial waste, which is often brought in by vans. The scheme requires a resident who owns a van to apply for a permit which allows up to 12 visits to waste and recycling sites each year. The permit costs £20.
There is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation into Mr B’s complaint.
It is for the Council to decide the best way to manage access to its waste and recycling sites. The Council has explained the reasons for the scheme.
Other local authorities operate similar permit schemes for vans or larger vehicles to try to stop sites being used for commercial waste.
We are not an appeal body and it is not our role to tell the Council to manage access to these sites in a different way. So, an investigation is not justified.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman