More than 33,000 Covid fines withdrawn in NSW after adverse court ruling

Court victory by Redfern Legal Centre prompts government to cancel half of all fines issued for breaching pandemic restrictions.

The New South Wales government has been forced to cancel more than $30m in fines for breaches of Covid-era public health orders after conceding they were too vague.

On Tuesday, Revenue NSW announced it had cancelled some 33,000 Covid-era fines, about half the total number issued by police for breaches of the public health orders during pandemic restrictions in 2020 and 2021.

The fines were withdrawn after government lawyers conceded on Tuesday that two test cases brought by the Redfern Legal Centre did not provide sufficient detail about the offence, a breach of the Fines Act.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Revenue NSW said the decision “does not mean the offences were not committed”, but acknowledged that “all sanctions” related to the fines – including driver licence restrictions or garnishee orders – would cease.

Fines which had already been paid would be refunded, the spokesperson said.

“A total of 33,121 fines will be withdrawn, which is around half of the total number of 62,138 Covid-19 related fines issued.”

The withdrawn fines related to two breaches of the orders: “Fail to comply with the noticed direction in relation section 7/8/9 – Covid-19” for an individual and a company. The fines amounted to $1,000 for an individual and up to $55,000 for a corporation.

Redfern Legal Centre had argued the fines did not provide enough detail of the alleged offence and brought three cases before the supreme court.

Agencies