Caravan family dodge $1,600 fine for breaching little-known parking rule: 'Very lucky'

The McCarthy family admitted they have no idea about the caravan parking rule.

The McCarthy family smile in front of their RAM and caravan in the bush.
The McCarthy family was almost fined for parking their caravan illegally on the Gold Coast. Source: McCram Adventures

A family of five living life on the road in their caravan have narrowly escaped a hefty fine after a friend's neighbour dobbed them in for an offence they didn't even know they were committing.

The family are one of many who have taken to the open road, eager to travel across and explore Australia while staying in touch with loved ones. Recently they travelled to the Gold Coast where they parked their RAM 4WD and caravan on a friend's property, however a knock on their door put a quick end to the stay.

Gold Coast council workers told the family their caravan was parked illegally.

"When we were told to move on, we actually didn't know you weren't allowed to park outside a residence for a short period of time," Tom McCarthy told Yahoo News Australia." We definitely didn't know that you were restricted to a one hour maximum [parking time] when your vehicle was over 7.5 metres in any residential or commercial built-up areas."

It is understood a neighbour complained to the council about the family parking where they did and notified the council. The City of Gold Coast gave a warning to the family rather than issuing a fine.

The council advised Yahoo News if a heavy or long vehicle (over 7.5m) is parked in the street for more than an hour a $241 fine may be issued. Many other states including Victoria, NSW and Western Australia have a similar parking rule.

The council also said people found illegally camping or sleeping in their vehicles on the road will be asked to move on and directed towards the council tourist parks. Repeat offenders may be fined $806 per adult.

"The City seeks to create public spaces that are safe and accessible for all residents, visitors and businesses," a council spokesperson said.

Tom and his partner could have both copped an $806 fine each, totalling $1612. He said they were "very lucky" to be let off with a warning instead.

The McCarthy family smile at a lookout (left) and their RAM and caravan driving along a beach (right).
The family had no idea about the parking rule until council workers knocked on their door. Source: McCram Adventures

Despite it being an inconvenience for the family to move their caravan on and find another parking location, McCarthy said they "understand why the rule is in place".

"If it wasn't, there would be caravans and campers parked out the front of most properties on the Gold Coast," he said. "We were not upset at all, we understood and the two workers that came to see us were lovely and tried to accommodate us as much as possible

"We were very lucky [not to be fined] as it's not the best way to start your holiday. For many, it would be a holiday ender," he said. "We wanted to make sure that other people who are travelling with their caravans were aware of this rule."

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