Telegraph.co.uk, 30 January 2015: 'Fine for wrong number plate unjustified'

“Motorists who enter a wrong license plate number at the parking meter but still paid for their parking time should not be fined. Nevertheless, the Privacy First foundation wants an appeal, as the violated privacy of parkers remains unchallenged in the verdict.

The foundation explains this in a reaction to the court's ruling in the case between foundation chairman Bas Filippini and the municipality of Amsterdam. Filippini was fined in 2013 because, to protect his privacy, he deliberately typed in an incorrect license plate number at the parking meter. Moments before, the municipality of Amsterdam had introduced mandatory license plate parking throughout the city, where a parking ticket can only be drawn if the license plate number is entered at the machine. (...)

Filippini neatly paid the parking fee due, but was still fined because of the wrongly entered number plate.

And the court is now drawing a line through that fine. Because Filippini was able to prove via a receipt that he did pay, the city may not impose a surcharge on him, the court ruled.

Benito Boer, Filippini's lawyer, has mixed feelings about the verdict. On behalf of the foundation, he says he is happy with the victory over the municipality, but feels that municipalities should not require the compulsory registration of license plates anyway. It also stings the counselor that municipalities introducing license plate parking do not offer alternative, anonymous payment methods. Parkers, like Filippini did, can now ensure their privacy only via a deliberately mis-entered license plate at the vending machine. Therefore, Privacy First hopes that the verdict will be appealed.

The Amsterdam municipality is not surprised and is studying the ruling. "You can compare this with the old situation, where people's parking ticket had blown off the dashboard and they were still fined. In this case, the same applies: anyone who objects to us and can prove afterwards that parking tax was indeed paid, does not have to pay a fine," a spokeswoman said."

Source: http://www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/23621240/__Parkeerboete_onterecht__.html, 30 January 2015.