Request a review of a fine

Exceptional circumstances are unforeseeable events. 

Please provide details of the exceptional circumstances where you have committed the offence due to unforeseen or unpreventable circumstances, for example:

•  A medical emergency
• Temporarily parking a damaged vehicle directly following involvement in an accident
• Mechanical breakdown

You must provide evidence so your review will not be accepted.

Providing evidence

To support a claim of exceptional circumstances, the City of Greater Dandenong requires evidence confirming the circumstances, including the relevant date and time.

Providing false or misleading documents will result in the review being automatically rejected.

Examples of satisfactory evidence include, but are not limited to are:

• Medical report or letter from a treating physician or hospital outlining specific details of serious illness or medical emergency.
• A detailed mechanical repair invoice, receipt for repair parts or goods or tow docket (detailing the work performed, date and time).
• Visual proof such as photographs, security camera or other video footage.

What are Special circumstances?

The term "special circumstances' is defined in the Infringements Act 2006.

Special circumstances may apply to you if at the time you got a fine the following situations contributed to you having a significantly reduced capacity to either understand or control the behaviour that was against the law:

You can only apply if you show that one of the following applies and are able to provide supported documentation:

• had a mental or intellectual disability, disorder, disease or illness or
• had a serious addiction to drugs, alcohol or a volatile substance
• you were experiencing homeless
• you were a victim of family violence
• You cannot deal with your fines because of severe disabling long-term circumstances, even if those circumstances did not exist at the time of the offence.

Special circumstances linked to your offending behaviour

To be considered, your special circumstances must be directly linked to the offence. If you have a mental illness, intellectual disability or serious substance addiction, you need to provide evidence that it reduced your ability to:

• Understand that your actions were unlawful, or
• Control your actions, despite knowing they were unlawful.

Please note: Not understanding the road rules is not accepted as a valid reason for a review. Holding a driver licence requires drivers to understand and follow the road rules.

Supporting documents​ required for your review

Your review can only be assessed if the required supporting evidence is provided and meets the criteria for reviewing the infringement.

1. Mental or intellectual condition:
   - General practitioner
   - Psychologist, psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse
2. Serious addiction to drugs or alcohol:
   - General practitioner
   - Psychologist or psychiatrist
   - Case manager
   - Accredited drug treatment agency or counsellor.
3. Homelessness:
   - Case worker or case manager
   - Other health or community welfare service providers
4. In the case of homelessness:
   - Medical practitioner
   - Victoria Police
   - Family violence case worker or social worker
   - Health or community welfare service provider.

What should be included in a supporting Document

• the practitioner's qualification and their relationship with you
• the nature, severity and duration of your condition or symptoms
• how your condition reduced your capacity to understand or control your conduct leading to the offence
• any treatment you have undertaken or are currently undertaking.

Offence was committed by someone else, or you were not the driver involved in the parking offence

In this circumstance, you do not have to complete a review.

You will need to complete a Nomination Form link (below).

Driver Nomination Form  - 3.10MB

Please provide details of the person who committed the offence. A Statutory Declaration form will not be acceptable.

Car was stolen at the time of the offence

Complete a review form and provide a copy of the police report if your car was stolen. A Statutory Declaration form will not be acceptable.

Car registration number was recorded incorrectly

Complete a Review Form and provide a copy of your car registration certificate.

If you only became aware of the fine in the last 14 days because it was mailed to you while you were overseas, after you changed address, or due to mail theft, you may be able to provide evidence to support this.

However, you must still qualify under another review ground. This reason may allow additional fees to be removed, but it will not result in the original fine being cancelled.

You believe no offence occurred, or that the fine was issued as a result of an administrative or legal error.

A review received for the following reasons will not be accepted and you will still have to pay the fine:

• Cannot afford to pay the infringement
• Not seeing or misreading a parking sign
• Weather conditions
• Being new to or unfamiliar with the City of Greater Dandenong or a particular road rule
• Being delayed at an appointment, meeting or being in a hurry
• Being unable to find anywhere else to park
• Moving your vehicle from one parking space directly to another between the same parking signs
• Parking for a very short time
• Not displaying a valid parking permit (for example an expired permit)
• Displaying a parking permit incorrectly (e.g. facedown or blown off the dashboard)
• Leaving the vehicle because you, or a passenger, needed to use the toilet
• Leaving the vehicle to get change or running out of change
• Stopping to let a passenger in or out, or to make a quick delivery
• Stopping to answer your mobile phone
• Running late to drop your children at school
• A school area being so busy you could not park legally
• Running out of petrol or experiencing vehicle issues that did not need repair or towing
• Being unaware of which vehicles can use Loading or Permit Zones
• Incorrectly displaying a dual-registration or transferable parking permit
• Being unaware of the act being a parking offence
• First offence, “clear driving record”
• Please note: Not understanding the road rules, as a driver, you are expected to understand the road rules as a condition of your driver licence

A review received for the following reasons will not be accepted and you will still have to pay the fine:

• cannot afford to pay the infringement
• forgetting to register or renew an animal's registration
• not being able to recall receiving your animal renewal
• being unaware that animal registration was required
• being told by a third party that you did not have to register your animal
• your property was inadequately secured and your animal escaped
• believing that because an animal is registered with a microchipping company it is also registered with Council.

If you have more than one infringement, you will be required to complete a separate request for each one

Important information prior to submitting a review

• When you submit your request, include all evidence to support your reason for review. You must provide information or documents that show why you are asking for the review.

• For parking infringements ONLY:
  If you were the driver at the time of the offence but are not the vehicle owner, you cannot request a review. The owner must first nominate you as the driver.
  Driver Nomination Form  - 3.10MB
  If you submit a review before this step, your request will be returned, and you will be asked to provide a nomination statement.

  How to apply for a review

• Apply for an online review

or

• Download a printed form (You will need to print, complete and returned to our Customer Service). 

The infringement will be put on hold once we receive your request. You will also receive an email acknowledging receipt of your request.

In accordance with the Infringements Act 2006, an Infringement Review Officer will assess your request within 90 days. Once a decision has been made, a written notice of the outcome will be served within 21 days of the decision.

Extra costs will be added to your infringement amount if we receive your request later than the due date. To avoid complete online review form prior to the due date.