Towed cars, unfair fares and botched hiring among 36 ombudsman cases

From cars towed without notice and illegal parking bans, to unfair ferry fares and botched recruitment at public bodies, the ombudsman’s latest report describes 36 complaints against the public administration.

The Case Notes 2024 by the Office of the Ombudsman describe instances of alleged maladministration, unfair practices and non-compliance with regulations by Maltese public bodies.

One example concerned the Local Enforcement System Agency (LESA), which pledges to notify vehicle owners by SMS within two hours when cars are towed. In practice, a registered complainant was left uninformed, with the police report surfacing only two days later. The ombudsman found that the distinction between registered and unregistered users was “unfair and improperly discriminatory”.

In another case, a local council was found to have acted beyond its powers by issuing a notice in the Government Gazette to suspend parking. This is a power reserved by law for the police commissioner and Transport Malta. The conflicting tow zone signs left drivers in what the ombudsman called an “impossible situation”.

Transport Malta (TM) featured in several cases. The authority failed to proactively assist a complainant saddled with licence arrears on a car she had sold back in 1999, insisting she resolve the matter in court despite having the means to intervene through a regularisation scheme.

TM was also faulted for misleading a complainant into believing a mooring could be transferred with a boat—contrary to its own published policy—and for failing to enforce permit conditions on stables, resulting in an “excessive” and “unsustainable” proliferation in Outside Development Zones.

Other cases exposed recruitment and employment irregularities. The Lands Authority Selection Board applied eligibility criteria too loosely, accepting experience in unrelated fields as equivalent to senior managerial expertise.

At MCAST, the ombudsman flagged both “unlawful and politically motivated” moves to dismiss the principal and CEO before his contract ended, and conflicts of interest in recruitment appeals. Poorly drafted call documents and inappropriate assessment criteria were also criticised for disadvantaging candidates.

The ombudsman also identified discriminatory practices. Gozo Channel Ltd was found to have unlawfully denied reduced fares to an EU national over 60, basing its policy on a restrictive reading of regulations that favoured Maltese residents.

Education authorities imposed stricter requirements on members of one union compared with others, creating a “chilling effect” on free union membership.

Ferrying political visits to schools, meanwhile, remained governed by vague and inconsistently applied directives, only formally circulated after a complaint was lodged.

In healthcare, the ombudsman intervened to correct two unfair policies: one that denied IVF medication refunds for treatment at private clinics, and another that prevented diabetic patients from receiving glucose monitors depending on which state medical card they held. Both were subsequently rectified by the Health Ministry.

Other maladministration included the Lands Registry charging double fees by incorrectly treating Malta and Gozo as separate registries, the Ministry for Home Affairs failing to recognise police reserve service for medal eligibility, and the MQRIC Appeals Board being left unconstituted for seven months, resulting in a backlog of 175 appeals.