Fines
(asked on 24th June 2015) - View Source
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the monetary value was of fines (a) imposed, (b) collected, (c) legally cancelled, (d) administratively cancelled and (e) outstanding in (i) England and Wales and (ii) West Yorkshire in each of the last five years.
This Government takes recovery and enforcement of financial impositions very seriously and remains committed to finding new ways to ensure impositions are paid and to trace those who do not pay. This is why there has been a year on year increase in the total amount of financial penalties collected over the last four years. The amount of money collected has risen from £259m to a record of £310 million at the end of 2014/15. This is an increase of £20m (7%) in cash collection of financial impositions (excluding confiscation) compared to that collected in 2013/14.
The total amounts collected, cancelled and outstanding can relate to impositions made in the year stated or any previous year. These figures include fines, compensation orders, victim surcharge orders and prosecution costs orders.
The table below shows the total value of financial impositions imposed, collected, cancelled and outstanding in England and Wales in each of the last five years.
Year | Total Value Imposed | Total Value Collected regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Legally Cancelled regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Administratively Cancelled regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Outstanding regardless of Imposition date |
2010/2011 | £413,126,895
| £282,375,257
| £62,263,874
| £50,713,367
| £609,559,294
|
2011/2012 | £385,743,300
| £279,248,479
| £63,957,203
| £63,135,442
| £593,268,197
|
2012/2013 | £404,584,213
| £284,505,025
| £62,594,601
| £75,868,426
| £575,507,170
|
2013/2014 | £420,255,840 | £290,311,831
| £64,312,383
| £96,801,853
| £548,811,011
|
2014/2015 | £457,415,184
| £310,313,605
| £61,173,156 | £68,851,118
| £571,061,117
|
The table below shows the total value of financial impositions imposed, collected, cancelled and outstanding in West Yorkshire in each of the last five years.
Year | Total Value Imposed | Total Value Collected regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Legally Cancelled regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Administratively Cancelled regardless of Imposition date | Total Value Outstanding regardless of Imposition date |
2010/2011 | £12,094,804
| £11,525,096
| £3,929,083
| £1,537,284
| £15,856,479
|
2011/2012 | £13,330,881
| £10,632,367
| £3,215,040
| £1,595,232
| £13,798,228
|
2012/2013 | £15,810,747
| £10,991,885
| £2,833,105
| £1,202,628
| £14,492,646
|
2013/2014 | £19,708,027 | £11,421,315
| £3,631,848
| £2,288,949
| £17,079,786
|
2014/2015 | £20,574,159
| £11,415,051
| £3,953,832 | £1,747,960
| £20,832,281
|
Financial impositions are only administratively cancelled after all attempts to collect the amount outstanding have been made, and in accordance with strict cancellation criteria. These impositions can be written back on to the system if more information is found – for instance, a new address for the offender.
Legal cancellations can be applied after the case has been reconsidered by a Judge or Magistrate. Typically, legal cancellations are used where a case has been re-opened and the defendant has been found not guilty, following the presentation of additional information. Legal cancellations can be full or partial remittances of financial impositions.
The outstanding balance figures includes the value of accounts that were not due to be paid by the end of the period specified (either because they were imposed close to the end of the year or because they had payment timescales set by the courts for beyond the end of the year) and those that were being paid by instalments on agreed payment plans.