Fat parking fine hikes on the cards in Hamilton and nationally

Saturday, 10 August 2024

A parking ticket in Hamilton’s CBD - a 70% rise in infringement fees has been proposed although city council staff say it’s not enough.

A fat 70% hike in parking fines is proposed for Hamilton - and nationally - a submission to the Ministry of Transport has revealed.

The ministry’s suggested raising the $60 double parking infringement fee to $100, for example, with a similar lift for clearway parking-related fines.

But Hamilton City Council’s submission - signed off by chief executive Lance Vervoort - says even a blanket 70% increase won’t be an effective deterrent and that New Zealand’s fines are well below overseas levels.

The council’s also concerned the move could lead to more “anger and violence” towards parking wardens.

Transport Minister Simeon Brown says he’s expecting a report on the proposed parking fee charges shortly - the final decision is expected to be in place by the end of the year.

A ministry statement in response to Waikato Times queries said parking infringement fees - set nationally - haven’t been updated for at least two decades.

“The Ministry of Transport has provided the Minister of Transport with advice on adjusting the value of parking tickets for inflation.

“This is something councils have been calling for to support with enforcement.”

The proposed increases would be applied nationally once approved.

“Decisions will be confirmed by the Minister of Transport in due course, with changes expected to be in place by the end of the year,” the statement said.

Council chief executive Lance Vervoort approved the staff submission last month.

The ministry said councils get all parking fine revenue for some bylaw breaches and a portion approved by the Finance Minister for other types of parking offences.

That means a potential boost for council coffers under higher fines, particularly at similar levels of ticketing.

Transport Minister Simeon Brown confirmed he’d received advice from the ministry on an “inflation increase” to parking infringement and other fees.

“The ministry is undertaking targeted consultation with road controlling authorities and I expect to receive a report back from them on that consultation shortly,” his statement said.

A Hamilton council spokesperson said when changes are confirmed the council will work to introduce them as required under the legislation.

“Consultation was based on the new fees applying from 1 October 2024.”

The proposed fee hikes would apply nationally if the Minister of Transport approves them. Hamilton’s council is worried about the potential for “anger and violence” towards wardens.

But the council submission warned suggested parking fine increases were too low.

“Staff feel strongly that a blanket increase of 70% as proposed will not act as an effective deterrent and would continue to create inefficiencies in the transport system, which this review is aimed at addressing.”

The proposed fees remained two to three times less than fees for the same offences overseas.

Staff were confident they could implement the new fees regime by 1 October subject to various conditions, including a nationwide education campaign to help address concerns over traffic warden safety in light of the extra charges and also to promote public acceptance of them.

The submission said “parking is an emotive topic and even more so when being issued with an infringement fee”.

A national campaign could make it clear extra fees are set nationally and would probably be effective at “reducing the potential anger and violence the public are likely to share towards parking wardens when issued with an infringement fee”.

The submission also noted the likelihood of more legal appeals and adjudication once higher fees were introduced, adding to work pressure on wardens, debt collector Baycorp, the courts and the Ministry of Justice.

It criticised the “far too short” amount of time given for feedback on the ministry’s proposal saying future reviews needed to take this into account. Regular reviews would help ensure fees are “scaled appropriate to inflation”.