Infringement Withdrawal Guidelines

If you have been issued with a Penalty Infringement Notice and believe that you have a valid defence you can request to have the infringement withdrawn.

You can do this by either;

  • Electing to have the matter heard before a magistrate’s Court or,
  • Requesting that Council undertake a review based on the grounds that you submit.

The first step is to complete a Request for Withdrawal Form either by downloading and completing this pdf form or completing the form online. 

Requests can also be made

  • In person at Council's Customer Service Centre, 9 Pelican St, Tewantin; or
  • By post at PO Box 141, Tewantin, QLD 4565 Please include your infringement number on all correspondence.

Making a request for withdrawal

The request must be submitted by the person issued with the infringement.  For vehicle related offences, this will be the registered owner unless another responsible person has been nominated as responsible.

Reviews of infringement notices will only occur if the request has been made in writing and received by Council within 28 days from the date of issued. 

What do I need to provide?

To help Council make a fully informed decision, it is important that you provide sufficient supporting evidence to supports your request for withdrawal.

Depending on the type of infringement notice issued, you should try to include substantiating evidence which demonstrates;

  • Any legal defence or exemption from the law that is relevant to the offence.
  • Details and evidence which substantiate any exceptional circumstances.
  • Information which demonstrates that there is an error in issuing the infringement.

Typically this could include;

  • Information, documents, statements, photographs or diagrams which support your grounds for withdrawal.
  • A copy of a current approval, registration or licence as relevant to the offence.
  • If the infringement relates to a Parking offence, a Statutory declaration nominating another person as the driver.
  • Vehicle, machinery or equipment repair invoices as relevant to the offence.
  • A towing receipt which shows that you had broken down.
  • Written advice or a crime report from the Queensland Police Service demonstrating that the offence occurred as a result of another person’s actions.

What are grounds to withdraw an infringement?

Withdrawing an infringement notice is an important decision which Council takes very seriously. A Review officer will carefully consider your submission and make a decision based on all the information available from Council’s records and all of the information that you have provided provide.

Grounds for withdrawal are generally limited to where:

  • You have a valid legal defence.
  • There are other mitigating circumstances which would not have reasonably been known to the officer at the time that the infringement was issued.
  • The infringement was not issued in accordance with the law or there was an administrative error in issuing it.

Grounds which do not provide sufficient grounds for withdrawal

  • Personal financial difficulty.
  • Ignorance of the law.
  • Not seeing or understanding a sign or direction.
  • You don’t agree with it.

How long will it take?

Council will endeavour to complete your review and advise you of the outcomes as quickly as possible. Requests for withdrawal are completed within a 45 days.  During that time the infringement is placed on hold pending the decision.

Contact

For more information, or if you need assistance, please contact council's customer service centre.

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