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What actually are the fines for ...

12 replies

Wellhelloooo · 06/01/2021 09:51

Travelling outside your area for a walk
Travelling to see a friend indoors
Travelling to meet a friend outside
Shopping more than once a day

Before I’m attacked, I’m not intending to do these things. But it’s not clear on the gov site and I wonder what the real deterrent is for those who aren’t bothered about complying?

OP posts:
yankeedoodledandee · 06/01/2021 09:55

I think it's clear what the rules are so the fines are for breaching them?

Wellhelloooo · 06/01/2021 09:57

The question is what are the fines...

Doesn’t seem clear at all unless I’ve missed it. Read an article that said someone was fined 30 quid for travelling to exercise. Not exactly a deterrent imo Hmm

OP posts:
SendMeHome · 06/01/2021 09:58

You mean the amount? £200 for a first offence I think, then it rises. There’s an option of a £10k fine for holding a gathering etc.

yankeedoodledandee · 06/01/2021 09:58

The question is what are the fines...

Sorry, I totally misread you Blush

Wellhelloooo · 06/01/2021 10:02

Sorry I didn’t make it clear. Yes the amount.

@SendMeHome I don’t know anyone who has had a fine..yet people travel all over. Where does it say it’s 200? How far from your home can you go? I think it’s all too vague.

OP posts:
BarbaraofSeville · 06/01/2021 10:26

I know someone who was fined for travelling to a lower tier area to go to the pub. Police boarded the train between the cities and issued several penalties. Fines to individuals for this sort of offence will be at the minimum level.

The £10k fines will be for organising gatherings, eg weddings, raves. I've read about a few of these being issued locally.

Travelling outside your area for a walk - I think this would depend on risk - it's a 'should' stay locally not must. So if you drive to a quiet area to the other side of your own city, that's probably fine. Drive an hour to a crowded beauty spot along with thousands of others and park your car on a narrow road because the car park is full, probably not.

Travelling to see a friend indoors - again, this would depend. If the friend is vulnerable due to shielding, mental health issues, potential domestic abuse etc, that's probably legal. Socialising, not. Again, someone I know says she knows several people who've been fined for visiting friends and relatives when checks were made in an area where compliance has been poor.

Travelling to meet a friend outside - this is legal, but would depend how far and where you meet - see above. I'd say unlikely to be fined for this unless clearly outside the spirit of the guidelines.

Shopping more than once a day - There are no rules about where you can shop or how often. No-one is going to be fined for shopping multiple times a day or going to multiple shops. You are encouraged to go 'as little as possible' and 'stay local' but you're not required to do without things that are not available, or only shop in your nearest shop, and if a shop is open, you're allowed to buy anything that it sells, you're not required to only buy gruel.

DrCindyPops · 06/01/2021 10:27

I'm in Scotland so it may be different but I know 2 people who have had £60 fines for shopping out-with their council area.

BarbaraofSeville · 06/01/2021 10:29

How far from your home can you go? I think it’s all too vague

They can't set definitive rules, because these wouldn't apply to all people equally.

People who live in urban areas may have a choice of supermarkets in walking distance.

Those who live in rural areas may have to drive 10/20 miles or more to find any shop, or at least one that has a good range and/or is affordable.

Or anything in between.

What is reasonable to someone in the first situation is not the same as someone in the second. You have to apply common sense, which is not the same as 'looking for loopholes'.

BarbaraofSeville · 06/01/2021 10:31

Of course I should say that, my perspective is mostly from what the rules are in England, which are not the same as Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, some of which have had 'you must not leave your county' or 'travel more than X miles' type rules.

But still, you'd hope that people who live in the rural Highlands are not held to the same standards as those who live in the cities in the central belt.

BarbaraofSeville · 06/01/2021 10:34

Sticking to council areas is not always common sense/practical either.

Our nearest shops are in a different local authority and covid risk does not stop at council borders nor is uniform within local authority areas - many of the LAs here are also very mixed and you can have a council area that covers everything from large cities to rural villages, with huge variation in demographics, affluence, population density, available facilities etc.

HecouldLickEm · 06/01/2021 10:39

yes what is the definition on local? To travel 5 miles? is that local the place I am thinking of is much closer as the crow flies but one has to navigate a natural boundary. Police said that boundary could not be crossed but its a very well managed site you have to book for and has been brilliant at SD. Its in a scattered rural area and you need to pay to enter. Or are we ghettoizing people onto crowded pavements in busy towns?

SaladBowlsAndBasinsAndBuckets · 06/01/2021 10:43

A very measured response Barbara, thank you.

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