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AIBU?

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Original poster

Fined £80 for not joining

108 replies

Honeyandapple · 06/10/2020 14:37

The electoral roll.
Is this a new thing? The council have sent me a letter to my new address saying I must register to vote and if I don't register I will be fined.
Seems quite a lot and I'm unsure if this is a one-off fine or every time there's an election. I have always voted previously, but I now work in a position dealing with a lot of people in very vulnerable situations often with severe MH issues and often ex offenders. I'd quite like not to be so easily traceable!

AIBU not joining the electoral role and expecting not to have to pay a fine.

OP posts:
FelicisNox · 07/10/2020 18:07

I had no idea you could be fined. I always thought it was optional.

I think it's a bit of a cheek tbh.

TazMac · 07/10/2020 18:09

How does it work if you live in two properties, in different council areas?

My friend works away during the week and rents a studio flat but is registered at his home address, where he is registered to vote.

DynamoKev · 07/10/2020 18:14

@FelicisNox

I had no idea you could be fined. I always thought it was optional.

I think it's a bit of a cheek tbh.

Yeah, pesky government trying to make sure you can vote if you want to - bastards.
RustyBear · 07/10/2020 18:18

@TazMac - DH is in exactly this position. The council in his work area insisted he complete the form, and said there was no reason he couldn't be registered at both addresses, as long as he didn't vote in general elections, referendums or European elections in both places. However, you can actually vote in local elections in two places, because while a general election is counted as a single election, local elections are counted as separate events, as long as they are not in the same local authority. It's up to the Electoral Registration Officer to decide whether you qualify as 'living' in two places.

Dugee · 07/10/2020 18:19

We are in that situation too. DP rents during the week, don't know if he needs to now register there and at our house too. He is already registered at our house.

Dugee · 07/10/2020 18:20

And is he going to get a fine for not registering at his week day house when he is already registered here?

BubblyBarbara · 07/10/2020 18:34

How does it work if you live in two properties, in different council areas?

It says on the document. You only register at one place. It’s actually illegal to register twice as you’d be able to vote twice.

prh47bridge · 07/10/2020 18:36

No, not a hoax. The council can see that you've bought the house, so they are asking whether you need to register at this address.

Tiredwiththeshits · 07/10/2020 18:41

Get in contact with them. I opted in because it’s just easier and I use my right to vote. However my DH doesn’t and won’t so he was threatened with a letter also and had to phone them to discuss. Pretty simple process as far as I’m aware.

RustyBear · 07/10/2020 18:48

@BubblyBarbara

How does it work if you live in two properties, in different council areas?

It says on the document. You only register at one place. It’s actually illegal to register twice as you’d be able to vote twice.

No, it isn't illegal to register twice. It's only illegal to vote twice in the same election. As I explained in my previous post, you can register in two places if you are judged by the Electoral Officer to live in both, and you can vote in two local elections in different authorities.
CheeseAndOnionIcecream · 07/10/2020 18:51

Only £80? Several years ago,I was threatened with a £1000 fine for 'not having returned my electoral register form'. I HAD actually registered online,but that's another story.

MrsGrindah · 07/10/2020 18:55

I’m surprised that you always vote but have only just twigged this!

Runnerduck34 · 07/10/2020 19:18

You can be fined, it is a legal requirement to be on the electoral role, but obviously you don't have to vote if you don't want to.
You can opt out of the open register so your details don't get passed onto marketing companies etc.
If you are concerned for your safety you can enquire about anonymous registration.
Being on the electoral role is beneficial for your credit rating, especially useful if you apply for a mortgage or a loan or mobile phone contract.
You do normally have to confirm your details/re-register every year although I think this year they have made an exception because of covid.

Peppermintpatty24 · 07/10/2020 19:21

I don't vote.... haven't for many years and REFUSE to register. The envelope that comes through the door says "INVITATION" to register to vote. Well by definition, I always DECLINE their invitation.

BubblyBarbara · 07/10/2020 19:46

I don't vote.... haven't for many years and REFUSE to register.

Would you refuse to do your civic duty as a juror too?

prh47bridge · 07/10/2020 19:48

@Peppermintpatty24

I don't vote.... haven't for many years and REFUSE to register. The envelope that comes through the door says "INVITATION" to register to vote. Well by definition, I always DECLINE their invitation.
That's up to you but your council is entitled to fine you £80 for failing to register.
wooo69 · 07/10/2020 20:26

It has always been the case that you can be fined (up to £1000). There are two versions of the electoral register, if you tick the box to exclude from the “open register” your details won’t be sold to anyone who wants a copy. In extreme circumstances you can be an anonymous voter and your details aren’t then on either version of the register.
For several years I have pounded the pavements, door knocking, At this time of year, to chase up all the households who haven’t submitted a form. Many have had it sat there in the envelope but haven’t posted it and lots just don’t realise it had to be done every year - but I still went to the same properties every year!!! This year it is all change and you only have to inform of changes. There isn’t the door knocking exercise this year either.

DianaT1969 · 07/10/2020 21:46

These letters are a huge waste of tax payers money are very irritating. 2-3 times a year. I have no intention of moving and I'll let them know if I die. There isn't an ID check. I could send it back saying my name is Princess Banana Jammy Dodger. They'd be none the wiser. When will this country stop wasting paper and other people's money?

amispeakingenglish · 08/10/2020 08:48

I thought it was the law? That's why there is a fine.. and I have been on the edited version for years, no details in the public arena. Can any one who knows clarify, is it law that you have to be on the electoral roll? Thanks!

Blacksheepcat · 08/10/2020 10:12

Years ago our mortgage company suddenly pulled out and refused to lend us the money because it appeared my partner had not registered on the electoral roll at his last flat.

prh47bridge · 08/10/2020 10:48

@amispeakingenglish

I thought it was the law? That's why there is a fine.. and I have been on the edited version for years, no details in the public arena. Can any one who knows clarify, is it law that you have to be on the electoral roll? Thanks!
The law is that, if you fail to respond to three invitations to register, the registration officer can require you to register. If you still fail to respond you can be fined £80.

As some on this thread have said, there is a fine of up to £1,000 but that only applies if you are taken to court. It is obviously much simpler for the authorities to issue a fixed penalty notice.

GertrudeKerfuffle · 08/10/2020 11:03

I used to be an electoral services officer. From the perspective of my team, we had a statutory duty to make sure everyone who is eligible to vote is registered - that's the law, and it was my job to apply that law. The way we saw it was that we didn't want to leave anyone disenfranchised - you get people who ignore letters, ignore knocks on the door, then come election time are kicking off because they've left it too late and can't vote. In practice it is extremely difficult to fine someone because prosecution is impractical and expensive and I'm not sure it happened during my time. So basically we would have to do our best to strongly encourage people. Additionally, we always encouraged people to opt out of the open register (the one that anyone can buy) by telling them their details could end up being sold in the public domain

GertrudeKerfuffle · 08/10/2020 11:12

Dammit!

...and it gave me personally a great deal of pleasure to see that the open register was always much smaller than the full register if I ever did have to supply it to a buyer. So although we made (a very small) amount of money by selling copies of the edited register, it was never a factor in our work and we all hated that it's available to sell.

There is the option of anonymous registration, but when that option came in we found the regulations made it quite difficult to use, but it is an option worth pursuing, for example, if you are a domestic abuse survivor.

I shouldn't say this but in some cases we made quiet exceptions for e.g. domestic abuse sufferers, people with Alzheimer's and other cases where we felt we could help them discreetly. If you feel like you need advice, you should speak to or email someone in your local electoral services office (not someone on your doorstep, or council call centre).

GertrudeKerfuffle · 08/10/2020 11:17

Oh and I can confirm that you CAN register to vote at two addresses, as long as they are not in the same borough - e.g. if you are student or someone who owns two homes. This is so you can vote at local elections in both areas and have some influence in how things are run on a local level. At general election time you have to choose which borough you want to vote in as it is a criminal offence to have two vote twice.

prh47bridge · 08/10/2020 12:49

In practice it is extremely difficult to fine someone because prosecution is impractical and expensive and I'm not sure it happened during my time

This is one of the reasons the government introduced the £80 penalty charge. No need to prosecute any more, just send a fixed penalty notice.

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