Wrongful fine for littering

KittyeeTrix

Hi there,
I've just received a registered letter from Fingal Co Council stating a cigarette butt was thrown by a male driver from my car in Dublin on a date in December.

I have 21 days to pay the fine of 150e

I live in Galway and was no where near Dublin on the date in question. I've actually never driven this car in Dublin and was last in Dublin on public transport last August 2011.

On the day in question (Friday) I was in a research lab in NUIG in full view of my supervising lecturer all day working on a presentation I had to deliver for my final year project on the Tuesday. My husband was at home and collected our children from primary school.

Our local garda says we have to make a statement to him which we will do but I'm concerned about this...

I know for a fact that we weren't in Dublin and am worried that a car with our plates is wandering around Dublin:eek:,

How should I go about proving this??
Has anyone heard of this happening before??

KittyeeTrix

Crisis/paranoia averted:D

Lady from Fingal Co. Co just rang me to say there was a digit mixed up and I'm not in fact guilty of littering from my car in Dublin....Phew:)

An Udaras

Glad to hear it was resolved

Can I ask if the MOD allow who would have witnessed this offence occurring by person/vehicle involved?

Would it likely be a council litter or parking warden if it's been sent by Fingal county council?

PCPhoto

I would question how your information was available to fingal county council - for them to call you.

are they legally allowed access to your information ?

sometimes mistakes are made - even by civil servants !! - just count yourself lucky that it didn't make it all the way to court before they discovered their mistake. (it happens quite a lot)

An Udaras

Access to NVDF Records

Section 60 of the Finance Act (No. 13 of 1993) as amended provides for access to NVDF data by Government Departments, and licensing (motor tax) authorities in Ireland and other member states of the EU, the Revenue Commissioners, An Garda Síochána and such other persons as may be prescribed in regulations (most recently S.I. No. 382 of 2009) by the Minister for Transport.  Other recipients obtain NVDF data through their own specific legislative frameworks. There are also arrangements in place to supply non-personal vehicle data under agreement to a number of recipients who provide commercial services around vehicle identity checks to the general public. Recipients of NVDF data include;

E-Flow, who administer toll charges on the M50. Enquiries concerning eFlow, barrier free tolling or toll charges should be made to 1890 501050. Further information can also be got at www.eflow.ie.
Applus+ who operate the national car testing service. All matters relating to the administration and day-to-day operation of the car testing service including the issuing of test reminders is a matter for Applus+. Enquiries about booking a National Car Test should be made to 1890 412413. Further information can also be got at www.ncts.ie.

I presume they must have accessed the NVDF as described above. Here the most recent act which mentions a local authority

I'm still wondering who would have seen the alleged offence and then reported it.

Carawaystick

Fingal Co. Co. aren't a licensing authority, you have to go to Dublin city to do anything like that...

An Udaras

The link I posted above just says local authority.. The 2009 Act

Curiosity123

South Dublin Council just sent me a fine for a parking infringement on a date in December when I wasn't anywhere near Dublin on that day either!! Ive phoned them and the response didn't seem to be any surprise or concern on their part at all, it seemed pretty much par for the course, they did say possibly a digit was entered incorrectly.

Is it a case of increasing quotas for year end, I wonder?

ResearchWill

I know I'm going off topic, but it relates to Gov entering digits incorrectly. I was doing my first income tax return a few years ago, as I had just started out on my own. Did not have ROS so completed form, and awaited assesment expected to pay a few quid as they had a few bob in retention tax. Got my assesment they wanted if I remember correctly, 1.4 million. I nearly fainted, rang up the very nice women said, I know what happened there we have single 0 buttons and double and I think triple. Your income from an employment i had that year, was entered as 3000000 rather than 30000.

ScouseMouse

Sorry, off topic

BrianD

PCPhoto wrote: »

I would question how your information was available to fingal county council - for them to call you.

are they legally allowed access to your information ?

sometimes mistakes are made - even by civil servants !! - just count yourself lucky that it didn't make it all the way to court before they discovered their mistake. (it happens quite a lot)

I would assume that they would be able to access the car registration database for this purposes (or request access).

Legally allowed? It should be the norm. It's high time all these public databases were integrated and used properly.

As for the OP, leaving aside the human error which can happen, I would have made a statement to a Garda first. This would be important from two points of view - obviously the case in hand (no point in starting the fight in court) and the fact that his plates could have been cloned.

BrianD

superscouse wrote: »

Some of the fines SDCC give out for parking are unenforceable. The council didnt follow the proper procedure to make certain areas pay and display. They are hoping people will just pay up without question. Maybe the proper legal bods could elaborate on that one?

They regularly give out tickets outside my place, which is pay and display, and they are just ignored.

One of my neighbours has 13 - yes 13, and nothing ever came of it. Everytime I looked out he had another one.

I know another person very well :rolleyes: who has three and they may have got another one before christmas. He drove off as the guy was printing the ticket.

Heres where it gets interesting.

The procedure for pay and display where I am (or everywhere?) is,

1. Note car reg, location and time.

2. If car is still there in ten minutes, issue a ticket.

3. Place ticket in pouch and put under wiper. Take photo of said ticket.

4. Take digital photos of windows and dashboard to show no paid parking ticket displayed.

5. Send out reminder later if still unpaid, with internet links to photos of ticket on car to stop denials it ever happened.

Heres where it gets interesting. The guy I know drove off leaving the ticket in the wardens hand - the ticket didn't even get to the wiper. So, no photos to say it ever happened.

A reminder ticket appeared but there was no original ticket, no photos are available so that will go in the bin.

SDCC are scaring people away from my area and I dont appreciate it. I pay €650 a month in rates and they want me to pay €60 euro a month for a permit to park outside my own place. I know where they can go.

Legal advice is not allowed here, but if it was, I know what I would be telling you to do. If you are confident you were not even there, ignore it - and even if you were there, well, thats up to you.

i don't believe that parking wardens take photos of cars. This is only done if the car is immobilised. If you paying rates it would indicate that you are a business owner and you wouldn't qualify for a permit (least you can't get one in DCC land so far as I know). Parking is not free and if you use it you pay for it.