NPCC issues update on fines given during Covid lockdown

Data released today shows that 13,445 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) have been recorded by forces in England up to 11 May for breaches of government public health regulations. In Wales, 799 FPNs have been issued in the same timeframe.

The statistics released today show data for fines issued before regulations were updated by the government on Wednesday 13 May. All data relates to the original fining scale, starting at £60.

Government public health regulations introduced on 27 March 2020 to prevent the spread of coronavirus enable officers to issue individuals with fines if they failed to comply after officers have engaged with them, explained the risks to public health and encouraged voluntary compliance.

National Police Chiefs' Council Chair Martin Hewitt said:

“The vast majority of people continue to do the right thing, which protects the NHS and helps save lives.

“The figures show our approach is proportionate with just 0.02 per cent of the population in England and Wales being issued with a fine.

“I want to thank people for continuing to follow the regulations – I recognise it’s not easy and that this is a challenging time for us all. Our approach of – engage, explain and encourage, and only as a last resort, enforce – will continue. It is working across the UK. I urge the public to keep going, keep following the advice.

“Officers are working hard to keep us all safe from the full range of crimes in what remain challenging circumstances so we would ask everyone to work with us and remember that if you need our help we are here for you.”

Data tables for England, BTP and MoD Police

Table 1: Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) issued by territorial forces in England (and BTP), under emergency health regulations.

FPNs related to the enforcement of the new COVID-19 public health regulations

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Data table for Welsh forces

Fixed penalty notices issued under COVID 15th may