October 23rd 2024.
Kate Fumberger, a woman living in Sydney, shares her recent experience with parking fines that have left her feeling stressed and angry. She explains that she received three ticketless parking fines, totaling $960, in just four days. Kate resides in the Western suburb of Box Hill and has been struggling to find parking near the Tallawong Metro station, where she commutes to work each morning. After months of searching for a spot within a 10-minute walk of the station, Kate finally found a street with a few available spaces.
The street appeared to be a residential area with apartments and several cars were already parked there. Kate didn't see any "no parking" signs and decided to park her car there on Monday, September 9, and two other days that same week. However, a week later she received a parking ticket in the mail for $320. She was surprised to learn that she had parked next to an unbroken yellow line, which is illegal under NSW road rules. Kate admits that she didn't know about this rule and has spoken to others who were also unaware of it.
What made Kate even more upset was receiving two more parking fines of $320 each in the mail. She had hoped that the authorities would show some leniency, considering it was her first offense and there were no physical tickets left on her car the first time. Unfortunately, her case is not unique. Just last month, the Minns Government moved to ban ticketless parking fines after numerous complaints from motorists who were receiving multiple fines. However, the new law is yet to be passed and ticketless parking fines are still legal.
According to NSW Revenue figures, NSW councils earned over $158 million in revenue from ticketless parking fines in the 12 months leading up to June 2024. The City of Sydney council had the highest number of fines, followed by Canterbury-Bankstown Council and North Sydney Council. Kate's fine was issued by Blacktown Council. A spokesperson for the council stated that in most cases, rangers issue physical tickets. They also clarified that the three fines issued to Kate were done so correctly.
Since 2013, Blacktown City has been issuing tickets by placing them under vehicle windscreen wipers. However, in some cases, physical tickets are not issued for safety reasons, such as when there is aggressive behavior directed at Enforcement Officers. This information is confirmed by NSW Revenue data published earlier this year. Frustratingly for Kate, she was not left any tickets for her three fines, but has since noticed parking tickets on other cars in the same street. She has appealed her fines, but it was rejected by NSW Revenue.
In a letter to Kate, NSW Revenue explained that under NSW law, fines can be delivered by post or in person. They also mentioned that an issuing officer may choose to post a fine if it is not safe to stop or if the vehicle has left the area before a fine can be issued. Kate is now facing the burden of paying almost $1000 in fines, which she finds extremely unfair. She has a mortgage and the added expense has caused her to feel even more stressed. Kate believes that parking fines should not be as expensive as they are, especially compared to speeding fines.
The lack of adequate parking around Tallawong Metro station has also been a source of frustration for Kate. She explains that after the extended rail line opened in August, the situation became even more difficult. Kate has to leave for the station an hour earlier than she normally would just to try and find a parking space. Even then, the spaces she finds are almost a 10-minute walk away. This is not ideal for Kate, especially when she has to walk back to her car alone late at night. She wishes that the NSW Government had planned for this situation better and she believes that the fines she received were just for trying to park so she could get to work.
If you have a story similar to Kate's, please contact reporter Emily McPherson at
[email protected]. She would love to hear from you.
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