Heavy financial penalty for man who broke law by carrying out car repairs at side of road

 

Grimsby Magistrates' Court - defendant failed to attend

A MAN has been ordered to pay more than £1500 after being found guilty for a second time of repairing a car at  the roadside.

Under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 , it is an offence to carry out works on a motor vehicle on the roadside.

This includes repair, maintenance or servicing of a motor vehicle.

 The only exception to this would be if responding to a breakdown.

In June 2023, Gary Mills was seen carrying out repairs to a motor vehicle on a road. He was informed he was committing an offence.

He had also previously been taken to court for the same offence in 2022.

As a result, he was asked to attend a formal interview to help assist with the investigation under section 108 of the Environment Act 1995 but he failed to attend the interview, which is an offence itself.

Mills had previously been issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice  of £100 for the original offence, but failed to pay the fine. As a result, he was prosecuted at court for the offence.

At a subsequent hearing, held at Grimsby Magistrates Court, Mills failed to attend and a ruling was made in his absence.

He was ordered to pay £1,590 in total, with the fine broken down as follows:

£440 fine – offence 1 (carrying out restricted works)

£440 fine – offence 2 (failing to assist investigation)

£352 – Victim surcharge

£358 – costs

After the hearing, Cllr Ron Shepherd, NELC's portfolio holder for safer and stronger communities, commented: "This is a great result for our enforcement teams.

"They work tirelessly to ensure our borough is safe and prosecutions such as this are a prime example of why our teams do the work they do.

"People need to realise that there are rules and laws in place for a reason. 

"These are not simply there for our amusement, but to uphold the quality of life for the residents across the borough.

"Anyone found to be breaking these rules will be dealt with accordingly, with no exception. 

"This council has a zero tolerance policy and no one is above the law."

The Grimsby News says: We have sympathy for the defendant. Tinkering with cars is a hobby for many motorist, and there is nothing to indicate that any nuisance or inconvenience was being caused to other road-users. Also disturbing is the portfolio holder's tone of exultation at the conviction - it gives the impression of  a bullying council. Was it really such a serious offence?