Maribyrnong pet owners have vowed to take to court their fight against $295 fines for not re-registering their pets on time.
Star Weekly last week reported pet owners were furious about the fines, claiming they were told they could avoid penalties by making payments once they had been alerted. Maribyrnong council has defended its decision to fine 60 pet owners so far this year – double the 30 fines handed down last year.
A number of angry pet owners have taken to social media to discuss a potential class action against the council.
The council’s sustainable development director, Nigel Higgins, said less than one per cent of all renewals issued had attracted non-registration fines.
He acknowledged there were mistakes in more than 10 per cent of registration renewal forms sent out by a mailing company in late February, but he said pet owners still had plenty of time to pay.
“Of around 9300 registration renewals issued, about 1000 were reissued with an apology by the contractor due to incorrect details on the forms,” he said.
“The corrected forms were sent to pet owners with adequate time for payment. It is the owner’s responsibility to ensure their pets are registered. Like other forms of government registrations – like car registration – council does not send out reminder notices.”
A Yarraville pet owner, who asked not to be named, said a renewal notice for her two cats had been riddled with errors.
She was told another notice would be issued, but she says this never arrived. “Someone knocked at my door and I paid them. I figured the woman was there reminding me; she should have mentioned if I was going to be getting a fine as well.”
The woman said that given cat registration cost $35, the $295 fine without a reminder was “hefty” and beyond the means of many.
“It feels like a bit of a scam. I’m going to write them a letter to tell them I don’t think it’s fair and, if other people are also willing to go to court, it’s what I’ll do.”
Mr Higgins said infringement amounts were set by the state government and $295 was the minimum fine the council could issue for the offence. He said 15 notices were under review, but appeals against council fines were “for valid reasons only”, such as animals passing away or no longer being at the property.
