OMG! Man fined £240 for dropping cigarette butt in Tonbridge High St - a bit OTT or what?
By GaryGee50 | Tuesday, June 08, 2010, 09:43
A man will have to pay £240 after dropping a cigarette butt in Tonbridge High Street.
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Holy Smoke - ridiculously huge fine for man who dropped cigarette butt in Tonbridge
Simon Thorpe, of Shipbourne Road, Tonbridge, was issued with an £80 fixed penalty notice by an environmental enforcement officer from Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council in November last year.
Mr Thorpe failed to pay and on June 3rd was fined £175 and ordered to pay £50 prosecution costs and a £15 victim surcharge, whatever that is!
There is more detail at Kent News - but what do you think? I think even the £80 was OTT and if it had been, say, £30 like a parking ticket he probably would have paid up and it would have saved all this hassle.
Come on Tonbridge and Malling Council - play fair! We all want clean and tidy streets but massive fines will only result in non-payments and court proceedings. Anyone agree?
ps
Residents are asked to report littering by calling StreetLine on 01732 876060 or by using the online reporter at www.tmbc.gov.uk.
Comments
Cllr Owen, I feel before your unelected enforcement officers target the public TMBC should get their house in order.
These Enforcement Officers did the electorate have a choice or was it once again officers (unelected) decided we would have them.
Then again the level of the fine who chose it was it voted on, or just nodded through.
I'm a critic of TMBC from childhood at Larkfield and 13 years as Parish Councillor at Wouldham, that village on the east bank that TMBC forgets about.
Yes he should not have dropped the butt, deliberately it seems . Which is the key word.
Been past Kingshill today past TMBC offices, not that neat and tidy. Same on my last visit to the Castle offices BUT we are not allowed to fine you.
By RPC Pest Control at 18:42 on 08/06/10
ReportActually I do care, I care a lot for all the other responsible residents who have to pay for the selfish acts of others. It costs the coucil tax payers of Tonbridge and Malling in excess of £1m YES £1m a year to clear the paths, roads etc of deliberately dumped litter, and this includes cigarette ends, crisp packets beer cans and all the other detritus that the idiots who drop it seem to think is someone elses problem. As to any litter around the council offices I suspect that again it is dropped by selfish people and I would impose the same penalty on them if caught, there can be no exceptions.
By CllrOwen at 12:36 on 08/06/10
ReportA caring answer from an elected member.
I agree he shouldn't have dropped it in the first place but a enforcement officer definately OTT.
Was the electorate asked if they wanted these busybodies?
Who controls them?
Take away their powers, £80 rip off, you should see the waste around TMBC offices.
But one rule for them and fine the rest of us.
By RPC Pest Control at 10:29 on 08/06/10
ReportIt isn't so much that he did not pay the initial fine, but when ordered by the court to pay he refused, this then becomes a court issue nothing to do with the council therefore if the court wishes to hold him in contempt it can then impose their own penalty. The easy answer is DON'T drop it in the first place.
By CllrOwen at 10:14 on 08/06/10
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