Fixed Penalty Surcharge To Pay For Victims

Thursday, 21. January 2010

The Government is planning to apply a £15 surcharge to fixed penalties. Known as a victim’s surcharge it is currently applied to more serious offences such as criminal damage or domestic violence and can only be handed out by the courts. It was introduced in 2007 as a way to contribute towards the victim support services. The recently announced plans will attach the surcharge to fixed penalties where the offender has committed offences that are considered to be ‘consistent and serious.’ By applying the surcharge to fixed penalties it means that the payment can be enforced without the need for the case to be heard in court. Justice Minister Clare Ward told MPs: ‘Proceeds raised from the surcharge provide a ring-fenced source of funding for a wide variety of organisations providing non-financial support to victims and witnesses of crime.’ Motoring organisations said that drivers would probably see this surcharge as yet another Government stealth tax. I believe that this will simply be one of many ways that motorists will be hit with ‘taxes’ in order to balance the books as we emerge from the recession. By Graham Hill