The majority of complaints made to the Press Complaints Commission, which raise a possible breach of the Code of Practice, are resolved directly between the Commission's staff, editors and complainants.

These are either settled to the express satisfaction of the complainant following some remedial action by the editor or are not pursued by complainants following an explanation or other response from the publication.

Below are summaries of the latest complaints involving the regional press which fall into the first category.

Reading Evening Post
Barbara Osborne of Barretts (Containers and Storage) complained that an article was inaccurate when it reported that the company had thrown the belongings of a customer into a skip and returned to him just some soiled clothes. The complainant said that the customer had – in fact – removed the goods he required and instructed the company to dispose of the remaining items. Furthermore, the complainant did not consider that the newspaper had given the company sufficient time to respond to the allegations. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published a clarification which set out the complainant's position in full.

Bolton Evening News
G D Ruxton of Bolton complained that, following the tragic death of his wife in a car crash, he had been approached by a reporter at his home the following morning. The complainant was also concerned that a report of the incident contained inaccuracies. (Clauses 1, 5)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper sent the complainant a private letter of apology for any distress which may have been caused.

Scarborough Evening News
Paul Major of Scarborough complained that the headline of the article was inaccurate, as he and his partner had not assaulted his estranged wife. The complainant was also concerned that the article had been misleading as it had set out the prosecution's allegations as fact. He explained that all charges of assault were in fact dropped by the CPS. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved after the newspaper offered to publish a clarification making clear that the headline of the article had been misleading, and that the complainant and his partner had not been charged with assault, but had agreed to be bound over to keep the peace.

Hemel Hempstead Gazette
Richard Jamseon of Aldbury complained that a letter published by the newspaper on council housing contained a number of inaccuracies. However, the newspaper had not published the letter he had written in response. (Clauses 1, 2)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the letter the complainant had submitted on the subject.