Unpaid fines in region drop sharply

The total value of Wairarapa fines dropped in the past five years from $6,642,611 to $4,163,647, Ministry of Justice figures show.

Total unpaid fines and reparation owed in Wairarapa has dropped over the past five years, new figures show.

Between 2009-10 and 2013-14 the total owed dropped from $14,351,347 to $9,748,227, but fluctuated slightly within that period, according to Ministry of Justice figures for Wairarapa, including Masterton, Levin, and Dannevirke.

Of those, 36.1 per cent of fines and reparation are overdue, while 63.9 per cent are being paid off or are not yet due, an improvement of 5.6 per cent in the same five-year period.

The ministry said new legislation passed in 2010 had resulted in more fines being paid.

Changes included judges being able to re-sentence a person to prison or home detention if reparation they were ordered to pay was unenforceable or unaffordable.

Information sharing between the ministry and credit reporting agencies, Inland Revenue and the Ministry of Social Development was also helping to reduce amounts owed.

The total value of Wairarapa fines imposed dropped from $6,642,611 to $4,163,647 in the past five years, part of a trend that has seen falling crime rates leading to less fines being imposed nationwide, said Courts Minister Chester Borrows.

Masterton lawyer Frank Minehan said it was common for clients to get fines remitted to community work, although he had not noticed an increase in the practice.

"I think we have to see it in the context of the overall Government claim that crime - in terms of being brought to prosecution - had steadily declined."

Ministry of Justice collections general manager Bryre Patchell said nationally the ministry collected just under $250 million in fines and reparation each year on behalf of victims, local authorities, and agencies such as the police.

About 90 per cent of the money collected was for traffic-related offences.

"The amount of outstanding fines and reparation are at levels that haven't been seen for a decade, with $560.57 million owing at April 30, 2014, down from about $806 million in 2009."

While the ministry attempted to seek full payment of fines or negotiate payment, enforcement actions were taken when required and the ministry's efforts were "paying off".

Enforcement included claiming vehicles, seizing and selling property, making compulsory deductions from a person's income or bank account, suspending driver licences or preventing travel. APNZ