Rees Andrew Stephens hit with massive fine after deciding to fight parking tickets

A mechanic is out hundreds of dollars after being fined for parking near his Gold Coast home, with what he did next adding to the cost.

An unknown ute parked in Trentham Court, Parkwood, the same street Stephens was fined for parking on the verge. Picture: Google Maps

A MECHANIC’S fight against two tickets issued for parking just outside his Parkwood home has cost him more than triple the original fines.

Rees Andrew Stephens took Gold Coast City Council to court over two parking tickets he was hit with in September last year for parking on the verge on Trentham Court, Parkwood.

Stephens claims he was parking just around the corner from his home because there was no parking on his street.

He pleaded guilty in the Southport Magistrates Court today to two counts of stopping on a nature strip after deciding to abandon the fight.

Rees Andrew Stephens outside Southport Court. Picture: Lea Emery

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Outside court Stephens was asked what he thought of the tickets.

“A joke … just revenue raising,” he said.

“(Council) know how narrow the street is.”

Gold Coast City Council prosecutor Justin Matthews, of QBM Lawyers, said a warning notice was attached to Stephens’ car in the weeks leading up to the tickets being issued in early September last year.

“On September 1, 2018 he parked his vehicle entirely on the nature strip,” he said.

“The offence on September 5, he parked with three-quarters of his vehicle on the verge.”

Mr Matthews asked that Stephens pay $1849.50 in costs for prosecuting the matter.

An unknown ute parked on the verge in Trentham Court, Parkwood. Stephens was caught parking on the verge in the same street. Picture: Google Maps

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Magistrate Andrew Sinclair fined him $208 and ordered he pay the Gold Coast City Council $599 for their costs.

Stephens will also have to pay the $125.80 offender levy to the courts.

The original fines would have cost him just $208.

“It’s not like he was a commuter, he was parking at home in a suburban street,” Magistrate Sinclair said.

He said he noted that from aerial shots of the street he could see there was only four or five houses on each side of the street.

“He hasn’t been an extreme inconvenience to a lot of people,” he said.

Stephens told the court he was moving to Melbourne in December for work.

He said the family car and his wife’s work car were already parked in their driveway which is why he was parking in the street.