<aside> Before I start - please don't tell me I should have registered the vehicle earlier or got a warrant earlier or anything similar - not interested in hearing that - and if you want to say it, instead of hating maybe you could fly to Whitianga and collect the money owed to me by an ex-client who didn't pay leaving me very short over Christmas, or the corporate who didn't pay leaving me short over Christmas, or the other five companies who didn't pay ... you get the message. </aside> This is about legality of 'double dipping' on the fines.
When I was younger you couldn't get a warrant unless you had a current rego - that was cool as getting a rego didn't require anything more than rocking up with the dollars and paying for it.
Now days you cant get a rego without getting a warrant and if you get caught without a warrant you also get fined for not having a rego - thus the double dipping.
Short story - I want to get a WOF - failed because the Right Front Headlight would do Hi-beam and park but not low-beam. I also needed to get the lens coveres polished as they were scratched. Filled out rego form and tried to get rego - cant as no WOF. No problems. Left the WOf station, purchased the polisher (damn that's expensive stuff) and found repco didn't have bulbs for my van.
I put the WOF inspection sheet and the rego form I had filled out in windscreen - visible to all who might look, and drove into town two days later, with the van as there were two options for the bulbs and wanted to make sure I got the right ones. No problems - nothing illegal there.
Replaced bulb in RF light, also replaced bulb in LF light (might as well have two new ones - matching pair and an old one as a spare in the glove box ) and also replaced the park light bulbs - means there is a new set all around. Got home, tested the lights against my garage door - RF is gone again. Bother!!!!!
Next day scafolder un-installers turned up (we hadn't been warned they were coming that day) as they had to remove scaffold put up so they could repair our earthquake damaged chimney area. They needed to go up and down the drive so I moved my van onto the street outside my house. It turns out we have a person living on our street who phones the council if he spots a vehicle minus rego and/or warrant on the street and gets the enforcement unit around. I get back from work (having borrowed my wife's car) to find I have two tickets - one for no current evidence of inspection and one for rego. 2 x $200 = $400. Ouch.
My questions - Isn't that double dipping? I have evidence of trying to register my vehicle and the Govt process says I cant. Having tried, and with no legitimate reason why a rego and WOF should be tied together (remember in the past they were not tied and then tied in the other order) is it fair / just / legal to double fine a person? It feels like I tried to do the right thing paying for a rego but got stopped by the govt than fined for not having one.
Second question - Current Evidence of Inspection - doesn't a current WOf inspection sheet count? i know i cant go driving anywhere i want with just the inspection sheet but parked outside my own house?
Lastly - my rant against the council - Grow up!!!!! Ticketing a person who has to park their vehicle on the road outside their own house because they are having earthquake repairs done and turning down the request to waive is just another sign that reinforces my belief that all beaurecrats must have a full frontal lobotomy and any vestiges of common sense and decency removed before taking up their jobs - or maybe its just that bureaucracy and the enforcement unit attract little people who need to make themselves feel important by exercising pointless authority over others. Little man syndrome in my opinion.
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