Victorian businesses hit with millions in Covid breach fines, most still unpaid

Victorian businesses yet to pay hefty Covid breach fines face being pursued by sheriffs, with fears it could send struggling traders to the wall.

Cafe owners Irene and Alf Prosser were fined $11,000 without warning for failing to have a Covid-safe plan in place. Picture: Rob Leeson

Authorities are chasing Victorian businesses over massive unpaid Covid fines.

Tens of thousands of infringements have been dished out for alleged rule breaches — with businesses being slugged for between $5452 and $109,044.

Freedom of Information documents obtained by the Herald Sun reveal a small subset of the fines issued against “body corporates”.

As of September 6, 97 business fines worth more than $830,000 had been handed out by enforcement officials.

The total includes $30,891 in fines for alleged QR code breaches.

More than a quarter of fines have reached the “final demand stage”, meaning sheriffs can start taking serious action against businesses to recoup the penalty amount owed.

The documents show only 24 fines worth $85,940 have been fully paid – roughly 10 per cent of the overall number.

The data only show fines issued against businesses structured as a corporation and not sole traders and partnerships, which are issued infringements directly to the individual owner.

It’s expected Victorian businesses have actually copped several million dollars worth of fines since restrictions were enforced.

It comes as business groups lash the government over its “heavy-handed approach” to struggling traders.

Small Business Australia chief executive Bill Lang said the state government should be working alongside businesses to help them become Covid-safe rather than using inspections to “revenue raise”.

“Either Victorians are more resistant to rules than other states or we have a revenue hungry and overzealous government happy to rake in tens of millions in fines,” he said of the “extraordinary number” of fines.

Small Business Australia’s Bill Lang says it’s ‘completely unacceptable’ to fine small businesses for Covid breaches when they’ve tried to do the right thing.

Rye cafe owner Irene Prosser was slapped with an $11,000 fine – without warning – for not having a Covid-safe plan in place.

Ms Prosser said neighbouring businesses were all visited by department officials in May to provide a rundown on Covid-safe practices but her cafe, Aqua-Blu, was overlooked.

In mid October, wildlife officers who had been seconded to the Covid response visited Ms Prosser’s business to order her to implement a Covid-safe plan.

Despite doing so immediately, Ms Prosser still received an $11,000 fine just days later.

“I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the fine,” she said.

“It was partly an oversight on my behalf, but I honestly didn’t know about it. We have the whole kit and kaboodle, but we didn’t have a Covid-safe plan. The DELWP officers never gave the impression that I was going to receive a fine.”

A letter from the Department of Justice and Community Safety to Ms Prosser, seen by the Herald Sun, read: “It is vital that all businesses adhere to the directions so that we minimise the spread of Covid-19 in our community. We acknowledge that this is a difficult time for all Victorians, and that businesses face particular challenges, but compliance with the directions will help to bring us closer to opening up our state again”.

Ms Prosser has vowed to fight the fine, arguing it was “totally unfair” for small businesses to be hit with such hefty penalties during an already difficult time.

“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous. We’ve gone up and down, up and down. When we’re opened up, we’re slammed with all these tourists and the next minute we’re closed down again,” she said.

Mr Lang said it was “completely unacceptable” to see businesses – trying to do the right thing – fined for noncompliance without warning.

“From the moment the Victorian government announced that they were building an army of public servants to invade businesses … we feared this would see owners and their families, who have already suffered through months of lockdowns and restrictions, placed under further stress and then financially punished for innocent breaches.”

Mr Lang said the fine should be immediately revoked, along with any others issue to businesses that weren’t provided an opportunity to rectify any issues of alleged noncompliance.

“At every turn the Victorian government has chosen the stick over the carrot, preferring enforcement to encouragement,” he added.

“Small business families deserve better than this given what they have been put through during this pandemic and we urge the government to look to offer a helping hand to get our businesses Covid-safe rather than going back to the punishment stick.”