Christchurch man £330 worse off after non-payment of fine

A Christchurch man is £330 worse off having failed to pay a fine for dropping a cigarette butt in the town’s High Street.

On 20 October 2010 a man who lives in Fairfield, Christchurch was seen dropping the butt by a Civil Enforcement Officer from Christchurch Council who issued him with a fixed penalty notice for littering. If the man had paid the fine it would have cost him £75, or £50 if he had paid it within 14 days.

However he failed to pay the fine and was then taken to court for non-

payment. At Bournemouth Magistrates’ Court the man pleaded guilty to the offence by post and was fined £100 with £215 costs awarded to the Council plus a victim’s surcharge of £15.

Lindsay Cass, head of environmental services for the Christchurch and East Dorset Councils Partnership, said: “This goes to show that we take the issue of littering seriously, even if it is a cigarette butt. It also shows that people should not try to avoid paying a fine as it will end up costing them dear in the long run.”