Invalid infringements issued in Christchurch RCA
Cody C made this Official Information request to New Zealand Police
The request was successful.
From: Cody C
Dear New Zealand Police,
Are Police aware that a number of streets in Christchurch RCA, until recently, had posted speed limit signage which was never formally ratified by Christchurch City Council so never had legal effect?
What is Police's strategy for refunding infringements issued in error on these streets (if any)?
Yours faithfully,
Cody C
From: Ministerial Services
New Zealand Police
Tēnā koe
I acknowledge receipt of your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request below.
Your reference number is IR-01-23-32284.
You can expect a response to your request on or before 8 November 2023 unless an extension is needed.
Ngā mihi, Michelle
Ministerial Services - Police National Headquarters
-----Original Message-----
From: Cody C <[FOI #24387 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 10 October 2023 1:48 PM
To: Ministerial Services <[email address]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Official Information request - Invalid infringements issued in Christchurch RCA
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear New Zealand Police,
Are Police aware that a number of streets in Christchurch RCA, until recently, had posted speed limit signage which was never formally ratified by Christchurch City Council so never had legal effect?
What is Police's strategy for refunding infringements issued in error on these streets (if any)?
Yours faithfully,
Cody C
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WARNING
The information contained in this email message is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this message or any of its contents.
Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in error, please email or telephone the sender immediately
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From: Ministerial Services
New Zealand Police
Tēnā koe Cody
Please find attached the response relating to your Official Information
Act request, received by Police on 10 October 2023.
Please accept our apologies for the delay in providing you with a response
to your request.
Ngā mihi
Lisa
Ministerial Services
Police National Headquarters
===============================================================
WARNING
The information contained in this email message is intended for the
addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be
subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which
creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you
are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this
message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this
message or any of its contents.
Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect
those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in
error, please email or telephone the sender immediately
From: Cody C
Dear Ministerial Services,
I believe you have answered my first question, which is "No".
Ombudsman advice to Agencies (https://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/site...), ref. page 13, states:
a) "To be a valid OIA request, the information sought must be ‘specified with due particularity’."; and
b) "If there is any uncertainty about the scope of the request, clarification should be
sought from the requester."
As you sought amendment or clarification outside 7 working days and I did not provide amendment or clarification within 20 working days (ref. page 14), this request is now considered overdue. However, I will clarify the situation within my request below.
Christchurch City Council (CCC) is required to maintain an accurate, up-to-date, register of Resolutions (including Speed Limits) under their "Traffic and Parking Bylaw 2017".
However, CCC failed to do update their Resolutions since approximately 2018 and could not produce the Register for inspection when requested to do so under LGOIMA, as they were required to do under the Bylaw.
This was not an isolated incident. CCC only became aware of this issue on, or around, the time I contacted them and sought to retroactively push through a number of already-posted speed limits through as part of another consultation.
With only about 5 minutes researching I discovered that, for example, James Hight Drive (Halswell), had never been Resolved, despite having already had a posted 30 km/h speed limit sign for a number of years.
This puts Police in a precarious position where they may have issued an infringement based on signage that may not have had any legal effect.
In the case of James Hight Drive, the speed limit would then revert back to the urban default (50 km/h). This could mean anyone issued an infringement, say at a speed greater than 30 km/h but below 50 km/h, on James Hight Drive may be deemed invalid if appealed.
So, back to my second question: How do you plan to approach this issue?
Yours sincerely,
Cody C
From: Ministerial Services
New Zealand Police
Good morning Cody
Police enforces speed limits set by central and local government. When Police is notified of an incorrectly set speed limit Police will cancel any affected notices, reverse any payments, and remove associated demerit points. Where a hearing has been requested Police will notify the Court for the matter to be withdrawn.
There are no policies or instructions regarding invalid speed limits as the management of speed limits lies with either the NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi or the respective road controlling authority responsible for the management of that road.
Any questions regarding the setting of these speed limits should be directed to the relevant Authority.
Kind regards,
Lisa
Ministerial Services
-----Original Message-----
From: Cody C <[FOI #24387 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, 20 March 2024 11:28 AM
To: Ministerial Services <[email address]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: IR-01-23-32284 - OIA Response
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Ministerial Services,
I believe you have answered my first question, which is "No".
Ombudsman advice to Agencies (https://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/site...), ref. page 13, states:
a) "To be a valid OIA request, the information sought must be ‘specified with due particularity’."; and
b) "If there is any uncertainty about the scope of the request, clarification should be sought from the requester."
As you sought amendment or clarification outside 7 working days and I did not provide amendment or clarification within 20 working days (ref. page 14), this request is now considered overdue. However, I will clarify the situation within my request below.
Christchurch City Council (CCC) is required to maintain an accurate, up-to-date, register of Resolutions (including Speed Limits) under their "Traffic and Parking Bylaw 2017".
However, CCC failed to do update their Resolutions since approximately 2018 and could not produce the Register for inspection when requested to do so under LGOIMA, as they were required to do under the Bylaw.
This was not an isolated incident. CCC only became aware of this issue on, or around, the time I contacted them and sought to retroactively push through a number of already-posted speed limits through as part of another consultation.
With only about 5 minutes researching I discovered that, for example, James Hight Drive (Halswell), had never been Resolved, despite having already had a posted 30 km/h speed limit sign for a number of years.
This puts Police in a precarious position where they may have issued an infringement based on signage that may not have had any legal effect.
In the case of James Hight Drive, the speed limit would then revert back to the urban default (50 km/h). This could mean anyone issued an infringement, say at a speed greater than 30 km/h but below 50 km/h, on James Hight Drive may be deemed invalid if appealed.
So, back to my second question: How do you plan to approach this issue?
Yours sincerely,
Cody C
-----Original Message-----
Tçnâ koe Cody
Please find attached the response relating to your Official Information Act request, received by Police on 10 October 2023.
Please accept our apologies for the delay in providing you with a response to your request.
Ngâ mihi
Lisa
Ministerial Services
Police National Headquarters
===============================================================
WARNING
The information contained in this email message is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this message or any of its contents.
Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in error, please email or telephone the sender immediately
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #24387 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
===============================================================
WARNING
The information contained in this email message is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this message or any of its contents. Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in error, please email or telephone the sender immediately
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