Court service clamp down on fine defaulters
This Honda was the first car in Motherwell to be clamped
LAST week a Motherwell resident became the first person in the town to pay to have a clamp removed from their car.
This was part of an ongoing campaign by the Scottish Court Service (SCS) which is targeting a number of vehicles belonging to fine defaulters across Lanarkshire.
The Motherwell resident, who cannot be identified for data protection reasons, paid the original £45 fine in addition to the contractor’s fee to reclaim the Honda vehicle.
If the defaulter had failed to settle the amount within 24 hours the car would have been taken into storage where costs would have continued to mount up.
Ultimately the SCS can apply to have an unclaimed vehicle sold or scrapped.
Clamping cars is just one way the SCS can enforce payment and other measures include arresting wages, freezing bank accounts, deducting benefits and targeting persistent non-payers.
The courts can also issue warrants for arrest and defaulters have had their holiday plans ruined after being stopped at British airports.
SCS executive director Cliff Binning said: “We pursue all outstanding fines, from a parking matter to court penalties, and will use the enforcement measures in place to ensure payment.
“It doesn’t pay to ignore your fine, it won’t just go away. You may find your employers have been contacted and money taken directly from your wages or payment deducted from your benefits.”
Most fines, including parking or police tickets, can be paid on the secure website www.scotcourts.gov.uk/payyourfine.
Only fines which involve the endorsement of a driving licence with penalty points cannot be paid electronically including some police traffic tickets and penalties issued by the Safety Camera Partnerships for speeding or running a red light.
In these instances offenders can post their licence to Scottish Court Service, Central Processing Unit, PO Box 23, Glasgow, G59 9DA, or take it in person to any Scottish court.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Motherwell, Scotland
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 4 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 4 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 25 mph
Wind direction: North
