Parking fines costing Aussies millions
$600 million per year spent on parking fines, but which state has the worst offenders?New research has revealed Australians spent a stomach-curdling $1.2 billion over the past two years on parking fines, equating to $64 per person on average.
The data comes from comparison site Finder, which surveyed more than 1000 Australians, of which 24 per cent said they’d received at least one parking infringement over the past two years.
And the worst offending state Down Under might come as a surprise.
The nation’s most populous state, New South Wales, was found to have spent the least on parking fines, with NSW drivers each spending around $54 on average.
Perhaps surprisingly, at the other end of the scale, drivers in Western Australian were found to be the worst offenders, spending an average of $75 on parking fines.
Queensland came in second, at an average of $64 per person, followed by South Australia ($62), Victoria ($61) and NSW ($54).
To put things into perspective, the starting rate for parking fines differs dramatically from state to state.
Victorian drivers can be fined from as little as $33 for parking in the wrong spot, while South Aussies are worse off, with parking fines starting from $144. See the table below for the full list.
Finder’s analysis excluded ACT, Tasmania and the Northern Territory due to small sample sizes.
While most of us find parking fines plain frustrating, insurance specialist Taylor Blackburn said they can impact a driver’s credit score or insurance premium – something few of us might realise.
“Parking fines are unexpected and infuriating, but they can also harm your credit score if left unpaid,” said Blackburn, while some can result in demerit points which can push up the price of your car insurance premium.
“While one ticket is unlikely to impact your insurance, a track record of parking fines will – especially if they’re left unpaid. The impact on your insurance is even greater if you have a questionable driving history or have lied to your insurer about your demerit points.”
According to Finder, males are more likely to be hit with an infringement notice than females, while two in five millennials (39 per cent) have parking illegally within the past two years.
The Gen Xers among us are less likely to get done parking illegally, yet are copping higher fines than most, costing $92 on average.
Meanwhile, Baby Boomers are doing better than the rest, with just two per cent incurring parking fines over the same period. Let’s put it down to life experience, eh?
While you can lodge an appeal in most states if you think you’ve been fined by mistake, Blackburn says there’s one state in particular drivers have been more successful at contesting their fines.
“Data from the City of Melbourne shows that 23% of parking fines were withdrawn in 2018-19 after being contested, which is a pretty significant success rate,” Blackburn said.
Have you copped an unfair parking fine or successfully got out of one? Let us know in the comments below!
Parking fine prices by state
WA – fines start from $50
QLD – fines starts from $66
SA – fines start from $144
VIC – fines start from $33
NSW – fines start from $116
Average fine over past two years
WA – $75
QLD – $64
SA – $62
VIC – $61
NSW – $54
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