The law is an ass
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Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Welcome to today’s rant!
A woman in Richmond, West London was recently fined £150 for pouring the dregs of her coffee down a roadside drain. She was about to catch a bus to work and didn’t want to spill the remains of her drink on it. She was accosted by three ‘enforcement officers’ who issued the fine.
Richmond Council employs enforcement officers to deal with violations of parking regulations and issue fines where necessary. They may also investigate fly-tipping, dropping litter or refuse in the street, or the incorrect way of presenting refuse for collection (!)
She was unaware of the law, which, as we all know, is no excuse!!
It can be found under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. There are 164 sections, and 16 Schedules, 20 if you count the sub-schedules.
The miscreant asked the enforcement officers, all three of them, if there were any signs or information warning of the requirements of the law, but received no answer. She found the incident quite intimidating, but Richmond Council maintained that the body cams worn by the three officers showed that they had not behaved in an aggressive manner.
I think the sight of three officers approaching me and telling me I was breaking the law and needed to pay a fine would make my heart beat a little faster, too.
The lady asked what she should have done with her left-over beverage, and was told she should have poured it in a nearby bin. Richmond Council stated, “We are committed to protecting Richmond’s waterways and keeping our borough’s streets clean and safe. Enforcement action is only taken when necessary,”
This begs the question. ‘What should I do with left-over tea, coffee, or other drinks at home?’ Should they all be poured into the bin, rather than emptied down the kitchen sink?I wonder if this was a box-ticking exercise,
with the results to be charted to prove that ‘efforts are being made in our ongoing campaign to improve conditions in our borough,’ or words to that effect.
If the lady who has committed the criminal act pays the fine within fourteen days, it will be reduced by £50 to £100. She is intending to make a complaint when her case will be reviewed.
Postscript: The fine has ben lifted. Commonsense prevailed.
That is the craziest thing ì ever heard. I hope the officers were given a talking to.
ReplyDeleteLook around where the bin bags go, though. Here they would be taken to a dump or landfill and the coffee would go into the groundwater anyway.
DeleteAbsolutely bonkers!
DeleteWow, bean counting police. They didn't count on people finding out.
ReplyDeleteJobsworths!
DeleteYikes! I'd be really mad about that. We do have 'rules' here about pouring things down street drains here. Not sure I've heard of anyone getting a ticket for it.
ReplyDeleteIt's crackers.
DeleteWhat a ridiculous thing to be fined for! And so much! Thank goodness commonsense prevailed.Too often it doesn't.
ReplyDeleteI think Richmond Council was shamed into it, after such an outcry.
Delete*Sigh* I think the police should be looking to protect the community against rape, guns, stabbings and drugs.
ReplyDeleteThey're not police, just Council employees, like parking wardens.
DeleteGoodness me ... I was pleased to read at the end, that the fine had been lifted. You do shake your head at times.
ReplyDeleteI shake mine so much it will fall off one day! 😁
DeleteI didn't hear the full story on the news so couldn't understand what they were talking about. Thanks for explaining the inexplicable.
ReplyDeleteI heard later that the 'criminal' had just dropped her daughter off at school and was rushing off to work.
DeleteThis required three enforcement officers? Do they have no other duties that might occupy them? So relieved to learn the fine has been lifted from the poor woman. How intimidating it must have seemed.
ReplyDeleteOverkill doesn't quite fit, does it?
DeleteI imagine these were Council enforcement officers rather than Police? I can understand why the regulations are there ( we have a problem here with campervan owners emptying their toilet canisters into the street gulleys) but coffee dregs seems a little harsh.
ReplyDeleteThey were Council officers. I can understand how people emptying their toilet canisters could be fined. Sheer laziness.
DeleteIt another case of picking on the easy targets, I would question is it good use of council money to have 3 'officers' working together, barmy comes to mind.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Why not spend more money on police officers, who are sorely needed, and less on enforcement officers? Cheaper, of course . . .
DeleteSo much for being thoughtful and not spilling the stuff on the bus floor. Wonder what the fine is for doing that. Wow! Good to know not all the officers are working for ICE worldwide. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteICE would have a field day here!
DeleteIf it takes 3 enforcement officers to approach a woman trying to dispose of the dregs of a hot drink responsibly, I wonder how many enforcement officers it takes to tackle a large guy in a hoodie fly-tipping mattresses?
ReplyDeleteI suspect they'd avoid that little task!
DeleteThree idiots!! Glad to read the fine was lifted
ReplyDelete'Only doing our job, madam' . . .
DeleteI suppose she was the only victim to hand to apprehend. It is astonishing that our rivers are becoming sewage sludge and the water companies still walk free and yet a small amount of coffee down the drain is illegal.
ReplyDeleteQuite amazing! In my head I can hear, 'Not our problem, that's the water authority's concern.'
DeleteThe dregs will go straight to sea, whereas down the kitchen sink plughole will go into the sewerage system and be processed before going to sea. Well, that is what would happen here, but I think your sewerage system and storm water drainage are often combined, so it could undergo treatment.
ReplyDeleteThat's my smart arse answer. The fine was ridiculous, and I get your point about the intimidation. Better that the officers focus on people littering.
I think she was an easy target, but do they always travel in threes?
DeleteWith all the more serious crimes occurring in the world, this should be at the bottom of their list. I've often dumped a leftover drink into my yard when I get out of the car at home. Likewise in a parking lot when I've arrived at my destination
ReplyDeleteIt's quite ridiculous.
DeleteNot at all of funny incident for this woman. But when you think on it seriously when you drink that coffee even then it's still ends up in the water system when you go to the loo.
ReplyDelete🤣😂Too right!
DeleteI feel so sorry for the lady. Somehow, can't justify that the officers decided to focus on her "breaking of the law" and fine her for this.
ReplyDeleteShe was an easy target . . . 😕
DeleteThree?! How many enforcement officers are out there at any one time? TG common sense prevailed
ReplyDeleteGoodness knows. You don't often see a policeman, though, but I suspect enforcement officers are cheaper to employ than police officers.
DeleteI would think dumping your coffee in a bin might lead the the bin leaking coffee onto the sidewalks and wouldn't pouring it down a drain be any better.
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes, what do you do at home???
Glad there was a happy ending.
If that's the case, then a sign should be posted near all drains, waterways, etc. noting that dumping the remains of coffee, tea, soft drinks, or any kind of fluid down the drain is a crime. Three enforcement officers to take care of a misdemeanor? Now, that's a crime and a waste of taxpayer money
ReplyDeleteYou've nailed it, CJ. That's why so many people are up in arms.
DeleteYikes....I did this yesterday...Only thing, I poured mine out in a parking lot. Am I bad or what? It was either pour it out in the parking lot or spill it on myself.
ReplyDeleteYou naughty person, you! Tut, tut!
DeleteWhat a dumb thing that is! Insignificant laws that are bollocks probably give cops something to do while they are avoiding more serious and dangerous pursuits. Benefit of doubt might be that the law protects the waterways from women pouring battery acid coffee from paper cups into the roadside drain (?) Glad that she sorted them out.
ReplyDeleteWe need more police officers, but instead, we have enforcement officers for footling offences.
DeleteGreat rant. Sometimes the law is an ass.
ReplyDeleteToo often!
DeleteYes, common sense prevailed. It was a ridiculous situation. I assume the police took the view that they couldn't be SURE the discarded liquid was really coffee, and it could have been antifreeze or Novichok or some other terrible thing. But come on -- they could have checked out the empty coffee cup and reached the reasonable conclusion that no offense was committed.
ReplyDeleteI guess stuff that goes down the drain is treated along with sewage, while storm drains go straight to the river...?
I think there would have been an even greater outcry if it had been police officers doing the ticking off. You could be right about storm drains emptying to the river - I don't know.
ReplyDeleteSounds extreme. Littering isn't allowed here either (but happens of course frequenly anyway). Whether the rules include pouring out leftover coffee I can't say!!
ReplyDeleteLittering is awful, bu t surely coffee can't do any harm - too much caffeine is bad for the fish, maybe?
DeleteWow that’s crazy. Sounds like some California would do. We’ve got some strong arm laws regarding recycling now. How about enforcing real crime?
ReplyDeleteWe need more police officers and fewer enforcement officers, who, of course, are cheaper to employ and require minimal training.
DeleteI'm all for proper disposal of refuse, but this incident does seem just a mite excessive and out of proportion.
ReplyDeleteIt's bonkers!
DeleteI've just seen this on Facebook and like Dorothy, I though it seemed more than just a bit excessive! I can't believe they said she should have poured it in a bin :-o xxx
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine the state of the bins if everyone emptied their drinks in them?
DeleteThat fine was ridiculous. The woman only meant well. There’s a saying here in the United States that speeding tickets are given out more at the end of the month because police officers have a quota and get desperate towards the end of the month . I wonder if it was the same thing with this poor woman and her fine for disposing of some coffee so that she doesn’t soil a bus.
ReplyDeleteWe have the same issue here with speeding tickets towards the end of the month, as the police struggle to fill their 'quota.' I wonder if the same applies to Council officials?
DeleteI am happy for her that they did listen and pull that fine. a warning and advising of the law would be good. I have myself poured drinks down a drain and its the same thing as pouring it in the sink
ReplyDeleteExactly!
DeleteVery good
ReplyDeleteIt's a nonsense.
DeleteThank goodness the fine has now been lifted!
ReplyDeleteHurrah for commonsense.
All the best Jan
I think there must have been some very red faces in the Council offices!
DeleteThis is nuts...*rolls eyes.* Good to hear this preposterous fine was lifted.
ReplyDeletePetty bureaucracy and a touch of jobsworth.
DeleteIt’s a relief that common sense finally prevailed. What a needless ordeal over a few drops of coffee, and a perfect example of bureaucracy losing sight of proportion
ReplyDeleteI think there was a big sigh of satisfaction around the country.
DeleteAhhhh common sense, hard to find these days, but I'm very glad some was dug up from wherever they keep it.
ReplyDeleteCommonsense is like a precious metal and sometimes hard to find.
ReplyDeleteHow very odd!
ReplyDeleteThat's one way to describe it!
Delete