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How to Pay or Challenge a Fixed Penalty Notice

You can get a penalty between £75 and £400 for committing an environmental offence, for example:

  • littering (including food waste, cigarette butts or chewing gum)
  • fly-tipping
  • putting up posters without permission (‘fly-posting’)
  • not cleaning up after your dog
  • graffiti
  • not presenting waste properly
  • disposing of domestic commercial waste illegally

Environmental offences are criminal in nature and not civil offences.

 

Paying the fixed penalty

You’ll need to pay your fine within 14 days. If you pay your fine within 10 days you’ll only pay the reduced rate.

You can pay:

3GS, Payments Manager,
Payments Centre,
PO BOX 250, 
Deeside, 
CH5 9FL

 

Challenging the fixed penalty notice

If you do not agree that you committed the offence listed on the notice, you can challenge the fixed penalty notice. For more information see our Fixed Penalty Notice appeal guidance (DOCX, 20.6 KB).

If you are issued a FPN by Gloucester City Council but you disagree that you have committed an offence or feel that it was unreasonable for the Notice to be issued, you can appeal (in writing) to;

You’ll need to provide evidence to show why you should not receive the penalty.

 

If you do not pay the fine

If you refuse to pay the fixed penalty notice, then your case would progress to the local Magistrate’s Court. The maximum penalty on conviction is £2,500, a criminal conviction and any associated costs.

 

What information we keep about the fines

We keep records of:

  • fixed penalty notices we have issued, from issuing the fine to payment or prosecution
  • evidence if the case has to go to court 

 

Legal powers

Fines are issued under the Environment Protection Act 1990, the Clean Neighbourhoods & Environment Act 2005 and the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003. 

 

Appeals: more information 

If you disagree that you have committed an offence, you can decide not to pay the Fixed Penalty fine, and the matter will then be decided by a Court. However, this can be time-consuming for both parties. Consequently, Gloucester City Council has developed this internal appeal process that can help to resolve disputes before they get to Court.

  • Cases where an appeal might be considered favourably include, but are not limited to, instances where you can demonstrate that; No offence was committed, or the fixed penalty notice has been wrongly issued.
  • The offence was committed by someone else.
  • The offence wasn't the fault of the person against whom the Notice was served.
  • The Notice should not have been issued because the offender is under 18, or is physically or mentally incapacitated or has some other incapacity that prevented the person from understanding that they committed an offence.
  • Serving the Notice is not considered to be in the public interest – but don’t forget, the Council has a duty to enforce the law. Fixed Penalty Notices are designed to be a quick and easy way to deal with minor offences.

In order to serve an FPN, the issuing officer will have evidence that an offence was committed by the person against whom the Notice was issued. Any dispute must therefore clearly show the reasons why the FPN should be cancelled. You will be required to provide evidence, such as photos, witnesses etc. so that we can fully consider the dispute.

There are a range of reasons where a dispute shall not be considered, and these include;

  • Ignorance of the law – the legal test would be whether a reasonable person would be aware that an offence had been committed – it is common knowledge that dropping litter, fly tipping and allowing dogs to foul etc. is wrong.
  • You couldn't prevent the offence - the test would be whether a reasonable person could have taken steps to prevent the offence occurring.
  • The offence was minor – that’s why a FPN has been issued, as this gives the opportunity to avoid going to Court. More serious offences may be prosecuted without this option.