Fines

Council will consider a scheduled payment arrangement based on the amount owing on the infringement. You may receive an extension of time as a form of a payment arrangement as per the Infringements Act 2006. Council will determine the length of time to ensure that matters are finalised within an enforceable time frame as per the Infringements Act 2006.

If you require additional time or a lesser amount to make the payment, you will need to supply:

• Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card
• Department of Veterans' Affairs Pensioner Concession Card
• Centrelink Health Care Card
• Seniors Card

Please be advised, in regard to payment plans, they are reviewed and processed in accordance with our requirement to ensure that matters are finalised within an enforceable time frame as per the Infringements Act 2006.

You can request a review under this ground if all of the following apply:

• you found out about the fine within the last 14 days
• the fine was not personally given to you by an officer

If you moved house but you did not change your authorised address with the relevant agency (for example, VicRoads) within 14 days of moving, your application may not be successful.
 
Your application may not be successful unless you provide evidence showing you did not know about the fine. This could be a copy of your passport or boarding pass showing you were overseas, an invoice from a removalist showing that you moved house, a VicRoads address change confirmation, or a report about mail theft.
 
You must submit your application within 14 days of the date you became aware of the fine.
 
If your application is successful, you will be granted a further 21 days to deal with your fine.

You can apply under this ground if you believe that Council’s decision to fine you was inconsistent with the law.
 
For example, the officer who issued the fine acted unlawfully, improperly or outside their authority or the fine does not comply with the legal requirements of an infringement notice.

You can request a review under this ground if you have been incorrectly identified as the person who committed an offence, and you have evidence to support your claim. For example, someone provided your licence or gave your details to Council, or you have the same name as another person or family member and the wrong person received the fine.
 
This review ground does not apply if someone else was driving your vehicle at the time of the offence, you are the registered owner of the vehicle and you will need to nominate the driver at the time of the offence.

You cannot request a review under this ground if someone else was driving your vehicle. Failing to nominate the responsible person is not a valid reason to apply for mistake of identity.

You should only select this ground if you can show that the offence occurred due to circumstances that were out of the ordinary, unavoidable, or exceptional – such as a medical emergency or a vehicle breakdown.

These circumstances are very specific. You should only select this ground if you committed the offence and can show that:

• at the time of the offence you:
  • had a mental or intellectual disability, disorder, disease or illness
  • had a serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or a volatile substance
  • were homeless
  • were a victim of family violence, or
• you cannot deal with your fines because of severe disabling long-term circumstances, even if those circumstances did not exist at the time of the offence.

You will need to provide evidence from a qualified practitioner or agency to support your application. For more information on what is required and how to apply, see: Special Circumstances.

If you have any of the circumstances outlined below, you may be eligible to apply for a review of your fines under Special Circumstances.

These circumstances are very specific. You can only apply if you can show that:

• you committed the offence in part because you:
  • had a mental or intellectual disability, disorder, disease or illness
  • had a serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or a volatile substance
  • were homeless
  • were affected by family violence, OR
• you cannot deal with your fines because of severe disabling long-term circumstances, even if those circumstances did not exist at the time of the offence.

You must show a link between your special circumstances and your offending behaviour.

If you have a mental illness, intellectual disability, or a serious substance addiction, you need to provide evidence of how this reduced your capacity to:

• understand your behaviour was against the law, or
• control your behaviour (even if you knew it was against the law).

If you are homeless or a victim of family violence, you need to provide evidence of how this reduced your capacity to control your behaviour (even if you knew it was against the law).

If you are not able to deal with your fine due to severe disabling long-term circumstances, you need to provide evidence that your circumstances:

• are long term and severe, disabling or incapacitating, and
• relate mostly to issues other than financial hardship, and
• make it impracticable or unfeasible for you to deal with your fine by:
  • paying in full
  • paying in instalments

Examples include:

• long-term involuntary mental health care
• severe physical or intellectual disability.

To appeal for a parking fine, you will need to identify the grounds for your appeal.

Below is a list of common scenarios that Council do not consider a reason to withdraw the fine:

• Being new to the City of Whittlesea
• Stopped in a prohibited area for a short time
• Appointments or meetings running overtime
• Misread the sign / Didn’t understand the sign
• Being unaware of which vehicles can use Loading Zones or Permit Zones
• Running out of petrol, or experiencing vehicle issues that did not require repair/towing
• Forgot to display the correct or valid parking permit/disabled parking permit
• Being your first time

We will consider withdrawing a fine in the following circumstances (you’ll need to provide supporting evidence):

• the infringement notice was issued 'contrary to law' (you believe you did not commit an offence)
• the infringement notice was issued to the wrong person or vehicle (for example, you were not in the location or the wrong registration was recorded)
• 'exceptional circumstances' (verifiable and unforeseen circumstances outside of your control) could excuse the infringement, such as:
  • a medical emergency (an injury/illness posing an immediate risk to a person’s life or long-term health)
  • a vehicle breakdown
  • you stopped to avoid a collision or in the interests of safety
• you have 'special circumstances' that affected the behaviour at the time of the offence.  in you being unable to either understand or control the conduct that led to the offence, such as:
  • a mental or intellectual disability, disorder, disease or illness, or
  • a serious addiction to drugs, or alcohol or a volatile substance, or
  • homelessness
  • Victim of family violence within the meaning of section 5 of the Family Violence Protection Act 2008 where the person is a victim of family violence and family violence results in the person being unable to control conduct which constitutes the offence.

You can only request one appeal of your Infringement Notice, according to the Infringement Act 2006.

If you have applied for an appeal but have not received a response within 90 days, please call us on 9217 2170.

It can take up to 90 days to review your infringement notice as per the Infringement Regulations 2019. If you have already submitted an appeal, your notice will have been placed ‘on hold’ and you do not need to take further action until you receive our response.

When undertaking a review, we take into account all of the available information, including:

• information collected by the issuing officer
• circumstances outlined by you in your request for internal review (and any supporting documents)
• requirements under the relevant legislation (for example, Road Safety Road Rules 2009, Environment Protection Act 1970 or Infringements Act 2006)

You have submitted your appeal online and received an acknowledgement stating your infringement is now on hold. If you submitted your appeal by email/paper application, you will receive an acknowledgement letter in the mail.

If you provide insufficient information or we require further information, we may contact you in writing for more details before reviewing your infringement notice. If we don't receive this information by the specified date, we will make a decision based on the initial information at hand.

If the infringement is confirmed, we will advise you of a new payment due date.

If you don't pay the infringement notice, request a payment arrangement or elect to go to court by the new due date, you may incur further costs in late fees.

If you take no action, Councils’ collection process will continue. This matter may be referred to Fines Victoria or the Magistrates Court. Additional costs may be incurred.

Here are the possible outcomes available in relation to your appeal.

• Confirm the decision to serve the infringement notice
• Withdraw the infringement notice and convert to an Official Warning
• Withdraw the infringement notice
• Withdraw the infringement notice and refer the matter
• to the Magistrates’ Court under section 17 of the Infringements Act
• Waive any prescribed additional costs
• Approve a payment plan/extension of time for payment

Parking Infringement Notices are issued directly to the registered owner.  Owner details are obtained directly from VicRoads Vehicle Registration Database.

The registered vehicle owner is responsible for all parking infringements issued to their vehicle. Please note you do not lose demerit points for parking infringements.

If you were not the driver at the time of a parking offence, you can nominate the responsible driver which transfers the liability of the infringement to them. Please read and complete the online form below.

Please note, you cannot sign a nomination statement where you have been nominated. If you are the director of a company and you wish to nominate yourself for a company vehicle, please have an administration or fleet officer complete the nomination form. If another staff member cannot sign the nomination statement, you will need to provide proof you are the director of the company in order to accept the nomination form (ASIC's record.)

Submit a Nomination or Court Request

If you have received an Infringement Notice, you can elect to have a matter heard at the Magistrates’ Court. If you disagree with the outcome of your internal review, you have the option to have the matter heard at the Magistrates’ Court.

Before you submit your court request, you must ensure you are the registered owner or person/company listed on the infringement notice.

If you were the driver and haven’t been formally nominated, the registered owner of the vehicle must complete the online nomination application. Once you have been nominated, the infringement notice will be re-issued in your name and you will receive the infringement. You can then take action to resolve your fine (like requesting a review or electing to go to court).

A lawyer can act on your behalf, or company, named on the infringement notice. Ensure a letter of consent is provided. 

If you want to pursue this option, complete the online application for action by court request form. There may be a lengthy delay in obtaining a court date as this is determined by the availability of the Magistrates' Court.

Please note that the City of Whittlesea incurs costs as part of this process, and we seek to recover these costs providing the court finds the matter proven.

Submit a Nomination or Court Request

Accessibility parking bays are placed within the municipality to provide easier access for people with a physical or intellectual disability or injury. It is an offence for any vehicle to be parked in an Accessibility parking bay without a valid Accessibility Parking Permit clearly displayed.

Parents with Prams bays are provided by some shopping centres to assist parents with young children to easily access the centre. No permit is required to park in these bays. These bays are provided as a courtesy and it is not an offence for a vehicle inappropriately park in a Parents with Prams bay.

It is illegal to park any part of a vehicle on a nature strip. Vehicles parked on nature strips obstruct the view of drivers and pedestrians entering and exiting driveways. They can cause damage to utility connections and tree roots under the nature strip and prevent access to these utilities as well as being detrimental to the look of the area.

It is illegal to stop in a No Stopping area for any length of time. Dropping off or picking up is not permitted in these areas. No Stopping signs are installed throughout the municipality to maximise community safety. It is important that these areas are clear at all times.

In Australia vehicles drive on the left-hand side of the road and as such vehicles must also be parked on the left, facing the direction of travel. By parking on the opposite side of the road, vehicles will need to go on to the wrong side of the road when they move from the parking spot.

No Parking signs are placed in locations where there is a need for short-term dropping off of passengers or goods. A vehicle is considering offending if a driver moves more than 3m from the closest point of the vehicle or the vehicle remains stationary for longer than 2 minutes.

For the safety of children and other pedestrians, it is illegal to stop a vehicle within 20m before and 10m after a school zone crossing. School zone crossings usually have school crossing flags displayed during operating times.

It is illegal to park any vehicle within 10 metres before or after an intersection unless a sign states otherwise. Vehicles parked within 10 metres of an intersection obstruct the view of drivers entering and exiting the intersection.

Loading Zones are to assist delivery drivers and couriers to service local businesses. Only commercially registered vehicles or vehicles with appropriate permanent fixed signage (refer to Road Safety Road Rules 2017 for what is needed to meet signage requirements) are permitted to stop in a Loading Zone. Any non-commercial vehicle or vehicle without appropriate permanent signage cannot stop in a Loading Zone for any length of time.

A driver must not stop in a bus zone unless the driver is driving a public bus. Taxis, Uber or any other ride sharing vehicles are not permitted to stop in a bus zone for any length of time.

A driver is not permitted to stop in a permit zone for any length of time, unless the vehicle displays a current permit that has been issued for use in that area by Council. Disability permits are not valid in permit zones.

It is illegal to park within 3 metres of a solid white dividing line. Solid white lines are often installed near corners and bends in the road to ensure these areas are kept clear, so a driver’s sight is not obstructed.

Double parking is when a vehicle parks in a position where another vehicle is already stopped in the space between the driver’s vehicle and the curb. This is illegal as the driver’s vehicle is obstructing the flow of traffic on the road.

Only registered taxis may stop in a Taxi Zone. Any vehicle that is not a registered taxi cannot stop in a Taxi Zone, regardless of it they are dropping off or picking up passengers. Uber and other ride sharing vehicles are not permitted to stop in a Taxi Zone.

Yellow edge lines are installed in locations throughout the municipality where it is not practical for a No Stopping sign to be installed. Yellow edge lines should be treated the same as a No Stopping sign in that a vehicle cannot stop, for any length of time, at that location.

It is illegal for any part of a vehicle to be stopped on a footpath. This includes if a vehicle is partially blocking the footpath while protruding from a driveway or part of the vehicle is on the nature strip. Footpaths must be kept completely clear at all times.

Vehicles must be parked parallel to the far left of two-way road. This means vehicles cannot be parked so that they are protruding into the road. This also applied to vehicles parking in courts where there is a bowl at the end of the street. Vehicles must not be parked at right angles to the curb; they must be parallel with the two left-hand side tyres next to the curb.

Where marked parking bays are present, drivers must ensure the whole of their vehicle is parked within a bay. Where a vehicle is larger than a single parking bay, the driver may park using the minimum number of bays required.

Where a green timed parking sign has been erected, a vehicle must not be parked for longer than the time indicated on the sign. Holders of a valid disability permit are entitled to double the time indicated on a green timed parking sign when the permit is clearly displayed.

A driver of a heavy or long vehicle must not stop on a length of road in a built-up area for longer than 1 hour. Heavy vehicles are any vehicles registered with a GVM of greater than 4.5 tonne. A long vehicle is any vehicle that is 7.5m or longer. This may include a vehicle with a trailer attached.

Unregistered or abandoned vehicles must not be left in any public place according to the City of Whittlesea General Municipal Law. To do so may result in the vehicle being towed, impounded or disposed of.

In accordance with the City of Whittlesea General Municipal Law, it is illegal for any vehicle to display advertising for the sale of that vehicle in a public place.