Request a review of a fine (infringement)

We review infringements under the Infringements Act 2006. You can request one internal review of your fine. All review requests must be in writing before the infringement due date.

On this page

Please read the information below, before submitting your review, as second reviews are not permitted if you complete the review incorrectly.


Reasons that don't qualify for a review

Some situations are not considered grounds for review. Please read this list before requesting a review.

For animal infringements

  • I cannot afford to pay the infringement
  • I forgot to register or renew an animal's registration
  • not being able to recall receiving your animal renewal
  • being unaware that animal registration was required
  • being told by a third party that you did not have to register your animal
  • your property was inadequately secured and your animal escaped
  • believing that because an animal is registered with a microchipping company it is also registered with Council.

For local law infringements

  • cannot afford to pay the infringement
  • I don’t have anyone checking my property, so I did not know
  • the property is going to be developed soon
  • I forgot to apply for a permit or licence or believed that a permit or licence was already applied for
  • was unaware that a permit or licence is required
  • not aware of the permit or licence conditions
  • not complying with the conditions of the permit or licence
  • I received the notice but forgot to do anything.

For parking fines

  • I cannot afford to pay the infringement
  • It's my first offence and I have a clear driving record
  • I only stopped for a short time in a prohibited area (ie. picking up/dropping off passengers)
  • I did not see the sign or misread the sign
  • There weren't any other parking options available
  • I didn’t display or have a valid permit (ie. disability or residential parking)
  • I was running late or delayed at a meeting or work
  • I stopped within a school area (No Stopping and No Parking offences)
  • I stopped to make or receive a phone call

For planning infringements

  • I cannot afford to pay the infringement
  • I am the owner of the property and did not commit the offence
  • I was not aware of conditions required to be followed under the relevant Planning Permit (such as permitted construction activity times).

Applying for a review

To have your infringement reviewed, you must:

  1. Complete all relevant details in the application form
  2. Attach and supply all of your supporting evidence at the time you submit your application for review.
  3. Submit your application before the infringement due date.

If you wish to have multiple infringements reviewed, you will need to submit a separate review application for each infringement.

If you do not supply evidence, we will ask you to provide further information and evidence to support your claim. Your request will progress more quickly if you do. If you fail to supply any evidence by the due date, the review will be assessed based on the evidence available at the time of review.

All review requests must be made in writing and include the following information:

  • Your name and address
  • The infringement notice number
  • The vehicle registration number (where applicable)
  • An explanation of why you believe the infringement notice should be reviewed
  • Any supporting documentation
  • If your name is not on the infringement, you will need to gain consent from the person or company whose name appears on the infringement. This can be done by completing a nomination statement or providing written consent from the registered owner of the vehicle.

The review request must meet one of the grounds for review.

Request a review

Other ways to request a review 

If you cannot complete the form online, you can complete the downloadable file and submit it via:

Please note: The Mayor and Councillors are unable to have any involvement in reviewing infringements and are unable to respond to requests for review of infringement notices.

What happens next

Once we receive your request, the infringement will be put on hold and you will be emailed with an acknowledgment of your review application.

Under the Infringement Act 2006, an Infringement Review Officer will then assess your request and provide you with a written outcome within 90 days from date of receipt of your request.

If we receive your request later than the due date, extra costs may be added to your total infringement amount.


Apply for a payment plan or extension

We can provide you with the following support if you are unable to make payment for your fine by the due date. The following payment options are available:

  • A 28-day extension of time. 
  • A payment arrangement with Council or we will facilitate one through Fines Victoria We will forward your request to Fines Victoria for a payment arrangement for parking fines only.

Apply for:


Grounds for review

Please note: providing false or misleading documents will result in the review being automatically rejected and the infringement being upheld.

Contrary to law

'Contrary to law' means that the decision to issue the infringement notice was unlawful.

 For example, this may arise where:

  • the infringement notice is not valid (for instance, it is incomplete, or it does not otherwise comply with the formal legal requirements for an infringement notice), or
  • an infringement officer has acted unlawfully, unfairly, improperly, or beyond their authority in taking that action or decision.

Supporting evidence

If you are claiming contrary to law, you should provide supporting evidence. This may include photographs of parking signage, witness statements or other evidence that goes to establishing facts.

Mistaken identity

'Mistaken identity' means that you weren’t the person who committed the offence.

For example, you were not the driver who committed the parking offence (the car was stolen or driven by someone else), or your registration number was recorded incorrectly.

Supporting evidence

If you are claiming mistaken identity,  you should provide supporting evidence. This may include your birth certificate, driver’s licence or passport which shows:

  • a different person than the one who received the infringement notice in the applicant’s name, or
  • evidence that you could not have committed the conduct because they could not have been in the relevant location.

Special circumstances

'Special circumstances' means you were affected by mental illness, intellectual disability, addiction, family violence, homelessness etc.

Special circumstances apply if you were affected by one of the following at the time of the offence:

  • Mental disability, disorder, disease or illness
  • Intellectual disability, disorder, or disease
  • Serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or volatile substance
  • Homelessness
  • Family violence
  • Long term condition/circumstances making it impracticable to deal with the fine.

Supporting evidence

To claim special circumstances you should provide supporting evidence — a letter, statement, report, family violence safety notice or a family violence intervention order — from the following parties can be accepted.

  • mental or intellectual disability disorder, disease or illness: evidence can be obtained from a medical practitioner, psychiatrist, psychiatric nurse or psychologist
  • serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or a volatile substance: evidence can be obtained from a medical practitioner, psychiatrist, psychologist, accredited drug treatment agency, drug counsellor, or case worker (from a community or social work facility)
  • homelessness: evidence can be obtained from a medical practitioner, psychiatrist, case worker or social worker, health or community welfare service providers
  • family violence: evidence can be obtained from family violence case workers or social workers, Victoria Police, medical practitioners or health or community welfare service providers
  • long-term condition or circumstance: depending on the condition, the report can be obtained from a variety of relevant professionals to establish the severe or debilitating condition/circumstances.

Exceptional circumstances

'Exceptional circumstances' means that events were unforeseeable.

Provide details of the exceptional circumstances where you have committed the offence due to unforeseen or unpreventable circumstances for example:

  • medical emergencies
  • temporarily parking a damaged vehicle, directly following involvement in an accident
  • mechanical breakdown.

Supporting evidence

To claim Exceptional Circumstances, we need evidence that supports the exceptional circumstance, including its time and date.

Examples of satisfactory evidence include but are not limited to the below.

  • medical evidence from medical practitioners
  • invoices or receipts
  • statutory declarations or affidavits
  • witness statements
  • photographs
  • travel documentation
  • police statements or records.

Person unaware

'Person unaware' means that you were not aware that you had an infringement notice.

An application made on the ground of ‘person unaware’ must:

  •  be made within 14 days of you becoming aware of the infringement notice (You may evidence the date that you became aware of the infringement notice by executing a statutory declaration)
  • state the grounds on which the decision should be reviewed, and
  • provide your current address for service. 

Important 

  • You cannot appeal under this ground if you have moved address and not notified VicRoads within 14 days of your change of address.
  • We will not withdraw your infringement under this ground. We will only consider waiving additional costs that may have been incurred.
  • Providing false or misleading documents will result in the infringement being upheld.

Possible outcomes

We will review the evidence and will send a letter outlining our reasons for the decision. The possible outcomes may include: 

  • upholding the infringement and issuing a new due date
  • withdrawing the infringement notice and serving an official warning
  • withdrawing the infringement notice
  • withdrawing the infringement notice and referring the matter to the Court
  • waiving the penalty reminder notice fee
  • approving a payment plan
  • a combination of the above.

The options available to the applicant if a matter is confirmed include:

  • paying the fine in full
  • applying for a payment plan or payment arrangement.
  • electing to have the matter heard in court
  • making a Family Violence Scheme application
  • becoming the subject of an application for a work and development permit.