Local councils are issuing ticketless parking fines at record rates, with a 49% jump in use of the system in the 2023/24 financial year, the NSW State Government said Wednesday August 7.
Minister for Finance Courtney Houssos first raised concerns with councils about the Print & Post system in March 2024 saying it failed to meet community expectations.
Under the ticketless parking fine system, introduced by the previous Liberal-National Government, councils can issue fines without first giving drivers an immediate notification at the time the parking infringement is identified.
This makes gathering evidence difficult, reduces the impact of a fine to act as a deterrent, and means a driver could receive multiple infringements for parking in the same spot before receiving a notification, the state government has revealed.
Despite that, councils have doubled down on their use of the system, issuing 822,310 ticketless parking fines in the 2023/24 financial year, compared to 551,441 in 2022/23.
Overall, all council-issued parking fines in NSW (both ticketless fines and paper fines), increased by more than 110,000 – around 9% – between 2022/23 and 2023/24.
Since March 2024, Minister Houssos and Revenue NSW have been engaging with councils to understand how they use the ticketless parking fine system and share her concerns about its shortcomings.
Thirty councils across NSW have indicated to Revenue NSW or stated publicly they have already, or plan to, change adjust their operations to leave an instant, on-the-spot notification to drivers.
Some councils have stated they are unwilling to make changes unless compelled through legislative change.
With consultation on the issue drawing to a close, the NSW Government will explore next steps to ensure a consistent, fair and transparent approach for drivers.
Minister for Finance Courtney Houssos said:“I’m grateful to the councils that have recognised the significant issues with the ticketless parking system introduced by the previous Liberal-National Government.
“I have spoken to mayors and councils from across the state and many agree there is a fundamental issue with a failure to notify drivers at the time of the fine.
“The community feedback has been overwhelming in favour of councils providing drivers with on-the-spot notifications of parking fines.
“Councils should come to the table and deliver a solution which embraces transparency and fairness.
“If councils aren’t willing to provide a common-sense fix, the NSW Government will step in and use our policy levers to ensure the ticketless parking fine system meets community expectations.”
Data Table: NSW Government
Northern Beaches Council announced on March 1 2024 it has adopted the Revenue NSW Print and Post service ''following successful uptake by 38 councils across the state.''
In a statement the Council said Council rangers will upload the details of parking offences to the Revenue NSW server, and Revenue NSW will print and send the notice to the vehicle owner via email or post.
''This new system offers a significant cost saving to Council and our ratepayers, is more environmentally friendly and provides recipients with more information about the offence.'' Council stated
Revenue NSW introduced the system in response to a number of issues with the old docket system including:
- recipients being confused by the docket style fines and the limited fine information provided
- fines being removed, leaving people unaware of the fine until they receive a reminder notice with less time to act
- administrative costs and staff resources required to send out letters.
Under the system Council officers will carry out their usual parking patrols. Officers will capture details of the offence as well as any relevant images onto their device. The details and images are uploaded onto the server.
Revenue NSW downloads this information each day, retrieves the vehicle owner’s details, prints and posts the fine on Revenue NSW’s letterhead on behalf of Council.
Within 2-3 days, the customer receives the notice via email (or post) and can view any images associated with the fine on the myPenalty page on the Revenue NSW website.
''The Print and Post service will apply to all parking offences from Monday 4 March.'' Council stated
The Council lists fines applicable, ranging from $120 up to $362, on this webpage: https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/services/parking/parking-rules
At the June 25 2024 Council Meeting Council resolved that:
Staff provide a report at the earliest opportunity which:
a. Evaluates the feasibility, possibility and legal implications of reversing the decision of Council to discontinue the ticketless parking system.
b. Assesses the feasibility and associated costs of introducing a paper-based parking notification system, coupled with the incorporation of Revenue NSW's Print and Post service for issuing parking fines. This evaluation should emphasise the preservation of transparency and accessibility for residents, as underscored by concerns voiced by Minister Houssos and the community. Key considerations include the provision of immediate written notifications to drivers upon fine issuance and streamlining evidence gathering processes for fine reviews.
c. Details the current process or procedure adopted by Council with the introduction of the ticketless parking system, aimed at identifying any gaps or missing requirements that could enhance community benefits
As part of the Discussion, Council noted:
The rollout of the service to councils across NSW followed a 3-month pilot with Burwood Council in 2020. During the trial, over 4,800 infringement notices were issued by Burwood Council using the ‘ticketless’ system.
The pilot was successful, with no complaints being recorded by Revenue NSW or Burwood Council during the trial. No concerns were raised about the ticketless delivery method. There was a decrease in abusive behaviour towards regulatory staff, who in turn felt safer, more engaged, and more productive in their duties, with the time to process fines also improving.
As the first council to issue ‘ticketless’ infringement notices, there were some initial concerns voiced about the absence of a ‘docket style’ infringement notice. However, the council addressed this with further information being made available on their website.
Due to the success of the Burwood Council trial, Revenue NSW has been progressively moving all councils to the ‘Print and Post’ system over the past 4 years, with 78 % of Sydney metropolitan councils having already successfully adopted the system.
Northern Beaches Council, like all employers, has a statutory obligation under Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislation to do everything reasonably practicable to ensure a physically and mentally safe workplace for staff.
Over the past 3 years, there have been 92 reported WHS incidents involving staff from the rangers’ team. A review of these matters has identified that 34 of the incidents would have been prevented if a ‘ticketless’ infringement had been issued.
Since commencement of ‘Print and Post’ ticketless system, there has been a decline in WHS related assaults and abuse being reported, and an increased confidence in personal safety expressed by the parking enforcement officers whilst performing their duties.
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Northern Beaches Council Quarterly Budget Review Statements:
31 Mar 2023 — Northern Beaches Council. Income and operating expenses budget review ... ○ Parking fines income 4,038m For the period 1 July 2022 to 31 March 2023
30 Sept 2023 — Northern Beaches Council. Income and operating expenses budget review ... ○ Parking fines income $1,409m For the period 1 July 2023 to 30 September 2023
31 Mar 2022 — ○ Parking fine income $4,047m.For the period 1 July 2021 to 31 March 2022
Northern Beaches Council Financial Statements 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023
Council met all financial and asset performance benchmarks set by the Office of Local Government for the 2022/23 financial year and achieved an operating surplus of $51.7m. The operating result was a surplus of $17.8m after excluding grants and contributions received for capital purposes.
Other revenues includes parking fines $5.6m ($0.1m lower than in 2022)- [COVID lockdowns impacts].