A St Albans community legal centre has accused Maribyrnong council of being “unfair” and “unaccountable” over its treatment of two Brimbank pensioners issued with parking fines.
Shifrah Blustein, a senior lawyer at the Brimbank Melton Community Legal Centre, has described the council’s system for managing infringement notices as “frequently unjust and arbitrary”.
Ms Blustein said the council’s decisions had had serious consequences for residents, including Kings Park couple Marina and Joe (not their real names), who were issued a parking fine for displaying an expired disability permit when they left their car in a disabled car space at Highpoint shopping centre in January.
The couple say they accidentally displayed the expired permit while the valid permit was in the glove box.
They received a fine of $152, which they said they had struggled to pay.
Joe has a number of serious health issues, including limited mobility.
Marina said she spoke to Maribyrnong council and was told the fine would be withdrawn if she could provide proof of the valid permit, including medical certificates.
She said despite providing all necessary documentation, the fine was upheld because the valid permit was not properly displayed.
Marina, 59, ended up paying the fine but criticised the council for its lack of compassion. “It was stressful because neither of us are working,” she said.
“The money could have gone to something that we needed.
“I was upset about how the council handled this situation. We weren’t doing anything shifty. We were entitled to park there and I showed them the permit.
“It was just a mistake. They should have given me a warning.”
Another Brimbank resident, Daniel (not his real name), in his 80s, has told Star Weekly he was issued a fine for leaving a valid parking permit on his passenger seat after he had rushed his wife to Footscray Hospital.
Ms Blustein said the council had refused Daniel’s application for an internal review of his fine, despite his wife’s critical health condition and proof of a valid parking ticket.
He successfully had the fine struck out at court late last year.
“This was a good outcome,” Ms Blustein said.
“But it was also a waste of ratepayer money to have a Maribyrnong prosecutor attend court only for the matter to be struck out. It should have been withdrawn from the beginning.”
She called on Maribyrnong council to think beyond the revenue raised by infringement fines, to the impact they have on community members and to “implement a fair, accountable and consistent system for reviewing infringement decisions”.
Maribyrnong council did not respond to questions before deadline.
