Council says ticketless parking fines protect against verbal and physical abuse

Minister for Finance Courtney Houssos has asked all councils to provide an on-the-spot, written notification to drivers, allowing them to capture evidence, including photos, if they seek a review.

Ms Houssos said ticketless fines were also not an immediate deterrent or behaviour changer, and that a driver could receive multiple infringements before receiving a notification.

Georges River Council was listed as the seventh highest council for ticketless parking, with 29,412 fines, totalling $6.54 million, last year.

The council says the quoted figure was for all parking fines, not just those issued through the ticketless system.

"Council currently uses a hybrid approach to issuing parking related fines," a council statement said.

"This enables council parking officers to continue to issue fines and warning notices directly to vehicles, including the high parking turnover areas of Hurstville and Kogarah CBDs, while utilising the ticketless scheme where immediate fine issue is not available.

"Because of this hybrid approach the parking fine revenue figures attributed to Georges River Council in the minister's media release are for all fines issued and not exclusively for ticketless fines."

The council said it it was "committed to ensuring the safety of its officers, and will continue to utilise the hybrid system for issuing fines as it provides the necessary balance between immediate deterrent, officer safety and addressing ongoing community concerns over illegal parking practices".

"Council would welcome the opportunity to work with the NSW Government to implement practical measures to address the concerns raised by Minister Houssos."

The statement said, prior to adopting the ticketless parking fine scheme in May 2021, Georges River Council undertook a review of the proposal to identify whether it would support or improve WHS (work health and safety) requirements for council parking officers, support efficiency and continue to provide the necessary deterrent for drivers who choose to park illegally.

"It was identified the ticketless scheme provided the necessary WHS support to help ensure the welfare and safety of parking officers whilst performing their daily work as they are unfortunately subject to regular verbal and physical abuse.

"Due to the nature of many parking offences, the suggestion to leave a preprinted card or note on a vehicle is not a practical one. In many instances, fines cannot be left on vehicles due to WHS risks or the vehicle driving away.

"All video and photo evidence captured to support the issue of ticketless parking fines is retained and is available to the fine recipient to assist them in understanding why the fine was issued and for use should they wish to defend the fine in court."

The statement said the council's parking officers, unlike NSW Police, were not authorised to park illegally while performing their duties.

"The use of ticketless parking fines allows them to issue fines to vehicles parked in unsafe (No Parking) or prohibited parking (bus/taxi/postal zones) locations," the statement said.

"Councils have previously sought an amendment to rule 307 of Road Rules 2014 to define council parking officers as Authorised Persons so as to provide a parking exemption to allow officers to put fines on vehicles, however this request was not supported.

"This amendment would help increase the number of fines that could be placed directly onto vehicles.

"Similarly, there have been calls for an amendment to the Surveillance Devices Act 2007 to enable council enforcement officers, including parking officers, the ability to utilise body-worn video cameras in the same way NSW Police are able to under section 50A.

"Such an amendment would provide additional options to councils to support officer safety while conducting enforcement duties."

RELATED

$18 mil windfall from ticketless parking fines for St George and Shire councils