How to Write a Fine Review Request (Special Circumstances, Every State)

The envelope has a photo of your car doing 64 in a 60 at 7:12am, or a parking officer’s snap of your bumper over a line you couldn’t see, or a council notice for a bin left out. It’s $138, or $302, or $511, plus demerit points. You’ve paid every fine you’ve ever had, and you’re about to pay this one too, because arguing feels pointless.

It isn’t. Every fines authority in Australia withdraws or downgrades a meaningful share of the notices it reviews, but only for requests that use the grounds the law names, arrive before the due date, and come with evidence. A review request is a form of representation, and there’s a way to write one.

Your rights

An infringement notice is an offer to settle an alleged offence without going to court. Until the due date you have three options everywhere in Australia: pay, ask the issuing authority (or the fines body) to review and withdraw it, or elect to have the matter heard in court. If the notice is for a camera offence and you weren’t driving, you must nominate the driver by statutory declaration before the due date; failing to nominate can leave you liable and, for companies, attract a much larger fine.

Review grounds are broadly similar across states: the offence didn’t happen or the notice contains an error; you were not the driver or owner; there was a medical or safety emergency; you have special circumstances (a mental illness, intellectual disability, homelessness, family violence or serious addiction that meant you couldn’t understand or control the conduct); exceptional circumstances outside your control; or, in several states, a long clean driving record that justifies a caution instead of a penalty. A review request stops the due date running while it’s considered; if refused, you still have the court election.

By state

• New South Wales. Fines Act 1996. Request a review from Revenue NSW online before the due date. Grounds include mistake of identity, an error in the notice, medical emergency, special or exceptional circumstances, and a caution for a clean 10-year driving record on minor speeding (under the Revenue NSW caution guidelines). One review per notice; if refused, elect to have it heard in the Local Court. Unpaid fines are enforced by Revenue NSW (licence and registration sanctions).
• Victoria. Infringements Act 2006. Apply for internal review to the issuing agency (Victoria Police via Fines Victoria for camera and police fines; the council for parking) on the statutory grounds: contrary to law, mistake of identity, special circumstances, exceptional circumstances, or that you were unaware of the notice. If refused, elect the Magistrates’ Court. Enforcement by Fines Victoria under the Fines Reform Act 2014.
• Queensland. No statutory internal review; write to the issuing agency (Queensland Police Service for camera and traffic fines, the council for parking) requesting withdrawal on the facts, or elect a court hearing using the notice. Unpaid fines go to SPER under the State Penalties Enforcement Act 1999. Driver nominations are by statutory declaration under the Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995.
• Western Australia. Write to the issuing authority (WA Police infringement management, or the council) requesting withdrawal, or elect to have it dealt with by a court within 28 days. Unpaid infringements are referred to the Fines Enforcement Registry under the Fines, Penalties and Infringement Notices Enforcement Act 1994. Driver nominations under the Road Traffic (Administration) Act 2008.
• South Australia. Expiation of Offences Act 1996. Before the due date, apply in writing to the issuing authority (SA Police or the council) for review, including on the ground the offence was trifling; or elect to be prosecuted. Unpaid notices are referred to the Fines Enforcement and Recovery Unit under the Fines Enforcement and Recovery Act 2017.
• Tasmania. Monetary Penalties Enforcement Act 2005. Apply to the issuing body for withdrawal, or elect to have the matter heard by a court within 28 days of the notice. Unpaid fines are enforced by the Monetary Penalties Enforcement Service (MPES).
• Australian Capital Territory. Road Transport (General) Act 1999. Through Access Canberra, apply for withdrawal or for an internal review, nominate the driver, or dispute liability and have the matter heard in the Australian Capital Territory Magistrates Court.
• Northern Territory. Fines and Penalties (Recovery) Act 2001. Ask the issuing agency to withdraw, or elect a court hearing within 28 days. Unpaid fines go to the Fines Recovery Unit. Driver nominations under the Traffic Act 1987.

The Claim Done document asks your state first and drafts the request to that state’s review grounds, body and deadline.

What to do right now

1. Find the due date and the notice number. Everything runs from the date on the notice. A review lodged after the due date is often treated as a late payment instead.
2. Pick one ground and lead with it. “Not the driver” is a nomination, not a review. “The sign was obscured” is an error/contrary-to-law ground; attach photos. “I was rushing my child to hospital” is medical emergency; attach the discharge summary. “I’ve had a clean licence for 12 years” is a caution request.
3. Attach evidence, not adjectives. Photos with timestamps, dashcam stills, medical letters, a driving-history extract (available from your transport authority), receipts, the parking machine fault report.
4. Keep it under a page. Reviewers process thousands. Facts, ground, evidence list, the outcome you want (withdraw, caution, or payment plan), your details.
5. If refused, decide on court within the time on the refusal letter. Never ignore a court date; a conviction in your absence is far worse than the fine.

Special circumstances vs “I didn’t mean to”

The single most common reason reviews fail is that they argue the penalty is unfair rather than that a recognised ground applies. “I only did 4 over” is not a ground; “I have a 10-year clean record and request a caution under the guidelines” is. “I couldn’t afford it” is not a ground; it’s a reason to ask for a payment plan or, in New South Wales and Victoria, a work and development order or permit. Special circumstances, where they apply, need evidence from a treating practitioner or support service that the condition affected your ability to understand or control the conduct at the time. Frame the request in the authority’s own language and it gets read as a review, not as a complaint.

Who to complain to

The fines body for your state (Revenue NSW, Fines Victoria, SPER, the Western Australia Fines Enforcement Registry, South Australia FERU, Tasmanian MPES, Access Canberra, the Northern Territory Fines Recovery Unit) for review outcomes and payment plans; the issuing council or police agency for the original decision; the state Ombudsman for maladministration in how a review was handled; and the relevant court if you elect a hearing.

Send a review the authority can act on — $49

Claim Done drafts a Fine Review Request for your state that names the statutory ground, sets out the facts and evidence in the order reviewers expect, cites the Act and the caution or special-circumstances guidelines where they apply, and states the outcome you seek before the due date.

Draft My Fine Review Request — $49 →

You review every word before it’s sent.