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Request an infringement notice review

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If you receive a fine from Council, you are entitled to request a review under certain conditions. 

Infringements notices (or fines) are issued by Council under various legislation and are issued for failing to comply with the law.

Appeal process

You are entitled to appeal your fine, however you must:

  • do so in writing to Council by the due date on your fine
  • specify the grounds for your appeal
  • include supporting documentation.

If you don’t act before the due date on your fine, it will continue through the fine process and more costs will be added.

You can appeal your fine at any time before the fine is registered with Fines Victoria (parking and other offences, where applicable).

All other fines that are not registrable with Fines Victoria can be appealed at any time before a charge and summons to appear in the Magistrates’ Court has been issued.

By law, you can request one internal review of your fine.

View your parking fine

You can view your parking fine details online, including any photos taken.

How to view your parking fine online

Eligible for review

If you submit an infringement notice review, you must satisfy one of these circumstances:

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Special circumstances

You may be eligible to apply for a review based on special circumstances if, at the time of the offence, you were experiencing one of the following:

  • A mental or intellectual disability or illness which impacted your capacity to comprehend or control the behaviour constituting the offence.
  • A serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or a volatile substance which significantly reduced your ability to understand or control the conduct constituting the offence.
  • Homelessness: if the homelessness contributed to a significantly reduced capacity to control the behaviour constituting the offence.
  • Family violence: if due to family violence, you experienced a significantly reduced capacity to control the behaviours constituting the offence. If family violence contributed to you receiving the fine, the Fines Victoria Family Violence Scheme may apply to you. 
  • Long term conditions making payment impracticable. This sub-group of special circumstances excludes financial circumstances and relates to circumstances which are particularly disabling or incapacitating in nature and result in you being unable to pay or otherwise deal with the fine.

 

To substantiate a claim of special circumstances, we need evidence that links your circumstances to the fine from a:

  • medical practitioner or other professional
  • social worker
  • drug and alcohol counsellor
  • Victoria Police officer (a police report of family violence)
  • a court order (family violence intervention order).
Contrary to law

This means that you believe that the fine is invalid or inconsistent with the law.

For example, you may believe that timed parking restrictions do not apply to the area that you parked in, or an officer acted unlawfully or outside their authority.

To substantiate a claim of contrary to law we may need you to provide additional evidence:

  • a statutory declaration
  • photos (e.g. a photo of the parking sign or lack thereof).
Exceptional circumstances

Exceptional circumstances are events that were unforeseeable and outside of your control that could excuse your conduct, for example:

  • a medical emergency
  • temporarily parking a damaged vehicle, directly following involvement in an accident
  • mechanical breakdown
  • financial hardship (e.g. bankruptcy or insolvency).

 

Documentation

To substantiate a claim of exceptional circumstances we need documentation that supports the exceptional circumstance, including its time and date.

  • medical evidence from medical practitioners
  • invoices or receipts (e.g. a receipt from a tow truck company)
  • a statutory declaration
  • witness statements
  • photos
  • travel documentation
  • police statements or records
  • proof of bankruptcy or insolvency.
Mistaken identity and nomination statements

This means that you weren’t the person who committed the offence. For example, you are not the driver who committed the parking offence (the car was stolen or driven by someone else), or your registration number was recorded incorrectly.

Nomination statement

If you are claiming mistaken identity in relation to a parking offence, you will need to:

  • complete the nomination statement if the offence was committed by another driver
  • provide a copy of your car registration certificate if the wrong registration number was recorded, provide a copy of your car registration certificate
  • provide a copy of the police report if your car was stolen.
Person unaware

This means that you were not aware that you had a fine. Reasons may include:

  • you were in another location (due to being overseas or having moved house)
  • your mail was stolen
  • other situations preventing you from knowing about the fine.

 

You must make an appeal within 14 days of becoming aware of the infringement notice.

You cannot appeal under this ground if you have moved address and not notified VicRoads within 14 days of your change of address.

A successful appeal under these grounds will allow for further time to deal with the fine (which may include further review under any of the grounds above or taking any other action available upon the issue of a fine).

We will not withdraw your fine under this ground. We will only consider waiving additional costs that may have been incurred.

Documentation

To substantiate a claim of person unaware we need documentation that supports your circumstance:

  • copies of date-stamped passports
  • boarding passes
  • removalist invoices
  • mail theft reports made to Victoria Police.


Not eligible for review

There are some circumstances that may not be eligible for review of fines for parking, animal, pool or spa or public health offenses.

However you are still entitled to apply for a review of your fine.

These include:

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For parking fines
  • not seeing or misreading a parking sign
  • being new to or unfamiliar with the City of Knox or a particular road rule
  • being delayed at an appointment, meeting or being in a hurry
  • being unable to find anywhere else to park
  • moving your vehicle from one parking space directly to another between the same parking signs
  • parking for a very short time
  • not displaying a valid parking permit (for example an expired permit)
  • displaying a parking permit incorrectly (e.g. facedown or blown off the dashboard)
  • leaving the vehicle because you, or a passenger, needed to use the toilet
  • leaving the vehicle to get change or running out of change
  • stopping to let a passenger in or out, or to make a quick delivery
  • stopping to answer your mobile phone
  • running late to drop your children at school
  • a school area being so busy you could not park legally
  • running out of petrol or experiencing vehicle issues that did not need repair or towing
  • being unaware of which vehicles can use Loading or Permit Zones
  • incorrectly displaying a dual-registration or transferable parking permit.

 

View more information on parking rules and infringements.

For animal fines
  • forgetting to register or renew an animal's registration
  • not being able to recall receiving your animal renewal
  • being unaware that animal registration was required
  • being told by a third party that you did not have to register your animal
  • your property was inadequately secured and your animal escaped
  • believing that because an animal is registered with a microchipping company it is also registered with Council.
For pool and spa fines

•    not being aware of the regulations
•    have not been advised by Council of the requirements
•    forgetting to register or lodge a certificate by the required date.
 

For public health fines

Public Health fines include:

  • Environmental Protection Act (EPA)
  • Food Act
  • Tobacco Act
  • Public Health and Wellbeing Act.

Circumstances that are not ordinarily considered to satisfy the grounds for review:

•    not being aware of the Regulations
•    have not been advised by Council of the requirements
•    forgetting to register your premises or lodge a certificate by the required date.

Apply for a review of your fine

All requests for review must be made in writing and include the following information:

  • your name and address (we will respond in writing to the address provided). If providing a P.O. Box a residential address will also be required.
  • the infringement notice number
  • the vehicle registration number (where applicable)
  • an explanation of why you believe the infringement notice should be reviewed
  • any supporting documentation.
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Submit your application

Online

Apply for a parking fine review

Only the registered owner of the vehicle can make an application to review the fine, or a person acting on the vehicle owner's behalf with their written consent. 

If you are not the registered owner, we require that the registered vehicle owner complete a Driver Nomination Statement. 
 

Apply for all other types of fine reviews

The following persons can apply for a review:

  • the person issued with a fine (whose name is written on it)
  • a person acting on their behalf with their consent
  • the company director or authorised representative if the fine is issued to a company.

The internal review process can take up to 90 days. The infringement will be placed on hold during the review process.


Post or in person

Complete the Application for review of infringement form and submit with documentation in support of your circumstances to:

Infringements and Compliance Officer
511 Burwood Highway
Wantirna South VIC 3152

Please note

The Mayor and Councillors are unable to have any involvement in Council’s administrative functions and are unable to respond to requests for review of fines.

What happens next

The internal review process can take up to 90 days. The fine will be placed on hold during the review process.

We will send a written response to your postal address advising you of the outcome.

You can find more information on the review process on the Fines Victoria website. 

If your application is successful, depending on the grounds you applied under, we can decide to:

  • withdraw the fine and take no further action against you
  • withdraw the fine and issue an official warning instead
  • approve a payment plan
  • waive or vary any fees associated with the fine
  • waive or vary any additional steps imposed by the fine
  • combination of all of the above.

 

If your application is not successful, you will receive a notice by mail to confirm our decision. You will be given a new due date and advised of your options:

  • how much you need to pay
  • when you need to pay it by
  • any other options available to you (e.g. apply for a payment plan, apply to Director Fines Victoria for payment arrangement, elect for matter to be heard by the Court, apply for Family Violence Scheme or Work and Development Permit).
     

If you do not provide enough information, we may contact you for more details before reviewing your fine. If we do not receive this information by the specified date, we will make a decision based on the information we have.
 

If you do not pay a fine or take any other action (for example, request a payment extension, request a payment plan or elect to go to court) by the new due date, the matter will be referred to the Magistrates' Court or Fines Victoria for further enforcement and you will incur additional costs.

Having the matter heard in court

If your review was unsuccessful, you may choose to have your matter dealt with in the Magistrates' Court.

We aim to contact you within 10 business days when you have elected to have your infringement heard in court.

Please note that additional costs may be incurred if the matter is referred to court.

Need help?

Contact us and we will come back to you.

Or call our Customer Service team on 9298 8000.

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