Aussie mum puzzled by 'shocking' $1,700 fine in mail after overseas holiday
The Sydney resident claims she had no idea she'd been summoned for jury service in the first place – and she's not the only one to receive the surprise fine.
A confused Aussie mum is searching for answers after she returned home from an overseas holiday to find a “hefty” $1,715 fine in her mailbox. The woman said online she was “opening a pile of mail” following her trip when she came across the notice from Service NSW.
According to the letter, the Sydney resident needed to pay the overdue penalty by October 9 for failing to explain her absence from jury duty for a court case in May. But the woman claims she had no idea she had ever been summoned.
“I didn’t get this by the due date of October 9. However, I have also never seen the jury notice for May 28 nor any other notices since. So I’m in total and absolute shock,” she posted on social media, asking other local mums for advice on getting the fine “ditched”.
The woman explained she hasn’t changed her address in “decades” and checks her mail every day. “The only mail I’ve received on the matter at all is this fine enforcement notice on return from overseas. It’s very strange. How can I prove I never received the original notice?”
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Turns out she isn’t the only one who has encountered the same problem, with several other Sydneysiders admitting they’ve had to plead for mercy for the unwitting error before.
One person said she had no idea she had a $1,000 fine for missing jury duty until she went onto Service NSW to pay a separate bill. “I had never received or seen a notice regarding jury duty or the associated fine,” she claimed.
Others urged the mum to simply contact Service NSW and explain the situation.
“This happened to me a couple of months ago. You just call them and explain what happened. They are very understanding,” one woman said.
“This happened to me in the past. I wasn’t travelling and have been in the same address, just simply didn’t receive the notice to serve jury duty. So I just wrote to them to explain my reason of not attending. They waived my fine,” another note.
Yahoo News Australia has contacted Service NSW for comment.
According to the state’s Department of Communities and Justice, if a person’s reason for failing to attend jury service is not accepted they can received a fine of up to $2,200. However they can apply to have the fine reviewed by a magistrate at a local court.
If you receive a fine for failure to appear for jury service you can have your fine reviewed if you:
did attend jury service, or
did not receive previous notices from the NSW Sheriff’s Office
had a legitimate reason for not attending jury service
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