£2,335 recovered from Edinburgh drug dealer who was refusing to pay his fines

When the officers tracked down and arrested his bank account he quickly paid up the full amount

Fines officers in Lothian recovered £2,335 from a drug dealer who was refusing to pay his fines – the most money they have ever arrested as a result of a single bank freeze order in the Sheriffdom.

The man, from Edinburgh’s Niddrie district, was fined at the city’s Sheriff Court for cocaine dealing, fraud and driving while using a mobile phone and for more than two years ignored warnings and dodged paying the money. He even gave fines officers false information about being employed to avoid an earnings arrestment order.

But when the officers tracked down and arrested his bank account he quickly paid up the full amount.

The 43rd Quarterly Fines Report published today by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service shows that the value of fines and penalties collected in the last three years has risen in all categories, reflecting consistently strong collection rates.

The report reveals that the value of Sheriff Court fines imposed during the three-year period between 2016/17 and 2019/20, and now either paid or on track to be paid as at 20 January 2020, has risen to 90% – an increase of one percentage point over the last quarter.

The value of JP Court fines shows a rise of two percentage points from 88 to 90% over the same period, while Fiscal Penalties are up three points from 73 to 76% and Police Fixed Penalties are also up by three points from 78 to 81%.

These high rates reflect ongoing success by Fines Enforcement Units in rigorously pursuing non-payers through measures such as seizing bank accounts, clamping cars or

arrest warrants.

In the Sheriffdom of Glasgow and Strathkelvin more than £17,000 was paid up by 75 offenders who had their bank accounts frozen over the past quarter with 37 offenders settling their bills immediately when they found their accounts had been arrested.

Freezing bank accounts, arresting earnings, clamping vehicles or even arresting non-payers travelling through ports and airports are among enforcement measures available to the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) for recovering unpaid fines. Non-payers can also have money taken directly from benefits and more than 6,900 benefit deduction orders were granted in the last quarter alone.

SCTS Chief Operations Officer David Fraser said: “The latest Quarterly Fines Report reflects a continuing success story of steady improvement in fines collection and illustrates how fines enforcement teams continue to be highly effective in securing unpaid fines. It is very unwise not to pay a fine or not to engage with an enforcement officer if someone is having difficulty paying. With our national dedicated team of fines enforcement officers, non-payment of a fine or non-engagement is simply not an option.”

In all cases, offenders have opportunities to make payment of their fines at a reasonable and affordable instalment rate. All defaulters are issued warnings before action is taken.

Those in genuine financial difficulty can engage with enforcement officers to discuss payment terms.

Most fines can be paid round the clock on our secure website at www.scotcourts.gov.uk/payyourfine or using our automated telephone payment system by phoning 0300 790 0003. Only fines which involve the endorsement of a driving record cannot be paid electronically at the moment. For those penalties that cannot be paid using the online or telephone payment systems, customers can post payments to Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, Central Processing Unit, PO Box 23, Glasgow, G59 9DA or take it in person to any Scottish court fines office.