The Law Handbook 2024

110 SECTION 3: Fines, infringements and criminal law You have 21 days from the date of the notice in which to pay the original penalty and the new costs (or to apply to enter into a payment arrangement). There is no formal application form to request Fines Victoria to waive the fees; instead, write a letter. When deciding whether to waive the fees, Fines Victoria will consider whether there were any administrative errors by the enforcement agency or by Fines Victoria that led you to being unaware of the infringement and hence incurring more costs. Fines Victoria will also consider whether there are any other relevant circumstances or hardships that mean you should not have to pay the extra costs. Note that Fines Victoria cannot waive costs ordered by a court in relation to a court fine. Option 6: Dispute the fine and take the matter to court If you believe you should not have to pay the fine, or should not have to pay the full amount, you may be able to elect to have the matter heard in the Magistrates’ Court. You may want to take this step if you did not commit the offence and the relevant enforcement agency will not withdraw the notice. When the enforcement agency sent you the infringement notice or penalty reminder notice, they may have included a form to fill out to elect to have the matter referred to the court. If not, write to the agency to request a referral. You cannot elect to have a matter heard in the Magistrates’ Court after it has been registered with Fines Victoria as a notice of final demand. However, there are other ways fines can be heard in the Magistrates’ Court after a notice of final demand has been made. It is important to seek legal advice before electing to have your fines heard in the Magistrates’ Court. This is because the penalties in Magistrates’ Court proceedings can be more severe (see ‘Court penalties’, below). Going to court is risky. Even if you think you did not commit the offence or you had a good excuse for committing the offence, you are at risk of being found guilty and being convicted. However, a conviction that originates as an infringement is immediately ‘spent’ (i.e. disappears and is not disclosed on a police check). For more information on spent convictions, see Chapter 3.9 Understanding criminal records. Nevertheless this is still risky for people living in Australia on a visa or in community detention. Option 7: Apply for an enforcement review from Fines Victoria Once you have received a notice of final demand, you or a person acting on your behalf can apply to Fines Victoria to review the decision of the enforcement agency that issued the infringement notice. You can apply for an enforcement review if: • the decision to issue the infringement notice was contrary to law; or • the decision to issue the infringement notice involved a mistake of identity; or • you have special circumstances; or • you have exceptional circumstances; or • you were unaware of the infringement. It is not possible to apply for an enforcement review for drink-driving or drug-driving offences, or for boating offences, or for excessive speeding offences (i.e. any speed over 130 km per hour, or any speed that is 25 km per hour over the applicable speed limit). Applying for an enforcement review It is important to seek legal advice if you are considering this option. The procedure for applying for an enforcement review of outstanding fines varies according to your reason for making the application: • If you did not commit the offence or had a valid reason for committing the offence, you should apply in writing for an enforcement review. • If there were special or exceptional circumstances, you may apply for an enforcement review. The definition of special and exceptional circumstances is discussed in ‘Option 3’, above. • If you did not receive the infringement notice or were unaware that the infringement notice had been served, you can apply to Fines Victoria to cancel the fine; applications must be in writing, must be made within 14 days of the applicant becoming aware of the infringement notice, and must explain why the fine should be cancelled. Note that enforcement review applications that are based on the grounds of the applicant being unaware of the infringement notice being served