Australia to refund thousands of Covid fines imposed on people

Sydney: Thousands of fines imposed during the COVID-19 period in Australia’s largest state, New South Wales, will be withdrawn and the amount will be refunded to the people who pay the fines.

The administration took the decision after the public prosecutor admitted that some of the fines imposed during this period were not correct.

Australian states had imposed strict restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, including travel and exiting the home. In New South Wales, police could fine up to 1,000 Australian dollars for violating government orders. The Redfern Legal Center, which provides free legal services, filed the case in July on the basis of three lawsuits.

In this, it had argued that the 1,000 to 3,000 Australian dollar fines imposed on the three were not correct as the fine notices did not mention the offence.

Prosecutors in the Supreme Court of New South Wales admitted during a hearing today that the fines imposed on these plaintiffs did not meet the legal conditions.