Driver's $119 fine over hard-to-spot parking offence: 'Stitch-up'

Passerby Sam McGinn couldn't believe the driver had been fined for parking where they did.

The grey Ford Fiesta parked in the dark South Yarra street, slightly over the driveway (left) and another angle shows it on the street barely blocking the driveway (right).
A driver was fined $119 after parking centimetres over a driveway in South Yarra, Melbourne. Source: Supplied

The difference of a few centimetres is what landed one driver with a $119 fine over a common parking offence, and many are calling out the council for their "harsh" decision.

Melbourne man Sam McGinn was recently walking past a parked car in South Yarra in the city's inner east when he spotted a parking fine stuck to the Ford Fiesta's windscreen. The driver's alleged offence, which occurred on August 14, was parking over a resident's driveway and blocking access to it.

However, it could be argued the car wasn't blocking the driveway at all, and instead, its bumper was ever so slightly beyond the boundary line of the driveway's entrance. McGinn agreed the infringement seemed uncalled for.

"Parking can be so hard to come by, especially on streets with a lot of units, so I think it's stiff," he told Yahoo News, declaring the fine an "absolute stitch-up".

The parking infringement on the wet windscreen of the grey Ford Fiesta.
The infringement stated the driver was fined due to parking 'on or across a driveway'. Source: Supplied

The council in question, City of Stonnington, did not respond to Yahoo's request for comment at the time of publication however, parking over a driveway has long been a finable offence in Australia despite some drivers being unaware of it.

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One couple learnt this the hard way in August when they were fined $362 for parking over their own driveway in Lake Macquarie, NSW, with the general rule being that no driveway can be blocked by a parked vehicle, regardless if it's partially or completely.

Therefore, the driver in South Yarra has committed a parking offence, regardless of whether their car is only a few centimetres over the driveway or completely covering it.

In many cases, councils advise drivers to leave one metre between their parked car and a driveway entrance to be on the safe side, however this can be challenging in built-up inner city suburbs where both parking and space are scarce.

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McGinn told Yahoo he questions the council's decision to issue a fine such as this after sharing it on social media, and online many were in agreement. Some said they would appeal the fine if they were the driver.

It is unknown if the driver has disputed the infringement or not. Yahoo News has reached out to the City of Stonnington Council for comment.

"In the end, rules are still rules, even if it gives off revenue-raising vibes," McGinn said.

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