Penalty infringement notices (environment and heritage matters)
The Queensland Government can issue fines called penalty infringement notices (PINs) for a wide range of offences relating to environmental and heritage matters, such as:
- a contravention of an environmental licence
- destroying a heritage protected area
- destroying a flying fox roost without authority
- littering of rubbish or cigarette butts
- illegal dumping of waste.
Littering and illegal dumping
Members of the public can report instances of littering and illegal dumping associated with a vehicle or vessel using the online littering and illegal dumping reporting system.
When the department receives a report from a witness, the information provided is assessed and specific details are confirmed, before a PIN is issued to the registered owner of the vehicle involved in the offence. Not all reports received will result in the department issuing a PIN.
To minimise the risk of malicious or vexatious reporting, correct and detailed information must be provided by the witness who makes the report. The witness must also commit to attend court if necessary and provide evidence if required.
Paying the fine
The fine should be paid in full, or arrangements made to pay by instalment, by the due date. For vehicle-related littering PINs, the due date will be specified on the PIN. For all other PINs, payment must be received within 28 days of the notice being issued. The fine can be paid in the following ways:
- Department of Environment, Science and Innovation
Penalty Infringement Notices
C/- Queensland Shared Services
GPO Box 173 Brisbane QLD 4001 - Telephone and internet banking – BPAY
- Credit/debit card can be made by telephone or internet – BPOINT
- Phone: 1300 276 468
- Website: www.bpoint.com.au
If the department has not received payment or a response by the due date, enforcement action may be taken to recover the balance and additional costs incurred through the State Penalties Enforcement Registry (SPER).
Payment plans
If you can’t pay the full amount by the due date, and the fine is $200 or more, you may qualify for a payment plan with SPER.
To apply, you must make an upfront payment of $60 by the due date, using one of the payment options on the notice. We’ll refer your outstanding debt to SPER, who will tell you what to do next.
Find out more about payment plans with SPER.
Unpaid PINs
Unpaid PINs are referred to the SPER, who will issue an enforcement order to collect the debt (additional costs will apply).
Disputing the offence
To dispute a PIN, you can:
- lodge a statutory declaration to nominate another person responsible for the offence (vehicle-related offences only); or
- lodge a statutory declaration to request to have the matter reviewed by the department (vehicle-related littering offences only); or
- elect to have the matter heard and determined in court.
Make a statutory declaration
A statutory declaration must contain several elements including the:
- name, address and signature of the person making the declaration
- signature, name and title of a person authorised to witness a statutory declaration—a Commissioner of Declarations (Comm Dec) or Justice of the Peace (JP)
- full name and residential address of the nominated person.
A person who knowingly makes a false declaration is guilty of an offence.
Statutory declarations can be submitted by email to Infringement.Notices@des.qld.gov.au.
Nominate another person responsible for the offence (vehicle-related offences only)
The registered owner of the vehicle can be held responsible for an offence even though the actual offender may be someone else, if the registered owner does not nominate the actual offender and provide their details to the department.
If you are the registered owner of the vehicle, but are not the person responsible for the offence, complete the statutory declaration on the PIN to nominate the person responsible, and provide that person’s details including full name and residential or business address (a PO Box will not be accepted). The person responsible for the offence may be the:
- driver of the vehicle who is not the registered owner
- passenger who committed the offence while the registered owner was the driver
- passenger who committed the offence when the registered owner was not the driver.
If the vehicle has recently been sold, complete the statutory declaration and provide transfer of ownership documentation with details of the new owner.
Request to have the matter reviewed (littering or illegal dumping offences only)
You have the right to request that a PIN issued for a littering or illegal dumping offence is reviewed internally by the department. To request a review, complete the statutory declaration on the back of the PIN and submit it to the department.
A request for review should include information and evidence about why the PIN should be withdrawn. This may include supporting evidence, such as:
- incorrect vehicle details
- evidence that the vehicle was not in the location specified at the time of the offence.
Insufficient or unsubstantiated information may lead to an adverse review decision and the matter being referred to SPER or court.
Elect to have the matter heard in court
You have the right to elect to have all PIN matters dealt with by a Court of Law.
To elect to have a littering or illegal dumping PIN dealt with by a Court of Law, tick the Court Election box on the reverse side of the PIN. The bottom of the PIN must also be co-signed by an authorised witness such as a Justice of the Peace (JP) or Commissioner of Declarations (Cdec). The signed and witnessed PIN must be returned to the address provided.
For all other departmental PIN matters, the Court Election section must be completed and returned to the address provided.