There has been a 75 per cent increase in the number of parking fines issued by Moorabool council in the past financial year.
The council issued parking infringements valued at about $100,000 in 2014-15 and is still chasing about $34,000 of the total.
Four community safety officers issued 812 infringements, compared to 245 during the 2014-14 financial year. Council chief executive Rob Croxford said there were a number of reasons for the spike. “In 2014-15, council undertook an education program around schools, making up flyers to encourage motorists to do the right thing,” Mr Croxford said.
“This was followed by a compliance program to support the message, which resulted in more fines being issued.”
He said the data did not reflect infringements that had been waived, and did not include escalated costs. He urged people struggling to make payments to contact the council.
“For people experiencing difficulties paying a fine, there is the option to contact council and enter into a payment plan.”
Meanwhile, Melton council officers issued more than 6600 parking fines in the 12 months to July, up from 5300 in the same time the year before.
Brimbank Melton Community Legal Centre manager Stephanie Tonkin said parking fines were a key problem for clients.
“A common issue is clients who need to attend medical or other appointments regularly but struggle to find parking, or who overstay the period when their appointments run longer than expected,” she said, adding that people who received a fine for an infringement they didn’t think they’d committed could write to council or the agency that fined them to apply for a review.
“People can also refer their infringement to the Magistrates Court,” she said. “But you need to be very careful about doing this because of the possibility of incurring further costs.”
Ms Tonkin urged people, especially asylum seekers, to seek legal advice.
