Gen Z Aussie defends cash crusade after note on windscreen results in $97 parking fine: 'Needs to be protected'

Yahoo

9 hours ago

A staunch cash defender would repeat his David vs Goliath battle all over again after losing his court case against a parking ticket. Oliver Griffiths copped a $97 fine after parking his car at his university campus earlier this year.
He disputed the fine and said he tried to pay in cash, but couldn't find a parking meter that would accept physical money. Sadly for him, his fight at Wollongong Local Court ended with the magistrate ordering him to pay the fine, as well as $98 in court costs, totalling $195.
The 21-year-old told Yahoo Finance it was obviously not the result he wanted, but he defended his choice to fight back against the initial fine.
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"If I knew the outcome was going to 100 per cent be guilty, which I kind of did anyway, before I took on the challenge, I'd do it again," he said.
"It's such an important principle to stand by.
"Regardless of the outcome, the trial was given exposure to nearly 1.5 million people. The issue has gained heaps of support for cash to be protected, and that momentum in itself is a win."Why did he get a parking ticket in the first place?
Griffiths loves cash and was dismayed when the University of Wollongong (UoW) introduced a cashless way of paying for parking.
Users could download CellOPark and upload their card details to use this "streamlined and simplified" system, but the money wouldn't come out every time they parked.
Instead, it bulk billed users at the end of the month.
The 21-year-old said he's sometimes "short on digital cash" due to bills, textbooks and other payments.
When he was trialling the CellOPark system, the app deducted $40 from his account, and it ended up putting a restriction on his debit card, which left him furious.
He ditched the app and instead placed a $10 bill on his car's dashboard and a note explaining that he wanted to pay for parking in cash.
Griffiths claimed the university had wiped out all cash-accepting parking meters, but UoW disputed that and told Yahoo Finance there are still some dotted around the campus.
Despite his attempt at paying for parking, he copped a $97 fine.
Instead of paying for it, he took the matter to court because he felt he should be able to use legal tender in these circumstances.
What happened in court?
The court case was a unique experience for Griffiths, who is in his fourth year of studying law at UoW.
He had to put all his university learnings so far into practice and was willing to take it to the highest court possible.
'I'm upset that I'm in a courtroom because I tried to pay for a parking ticket,' the 21-year-old told Magistrate David Williams and the Wollongong Local Court last week, according to the Daily Telegraph.
'I went above what most people do, and I left a note trying to pay.'
But he was scrutinised for not doing enough legwork to find the cash-accepting parking meters.
The prosecution asked whether he paid for parking.
'I tried to pay,' he replied.
The prosecution hit back with: 'No, answer the question. Did you pay for parking?'
Griffiths had to admit he didn't.
'I accept you wanted to pay cash, but there is no evidence you rang the parking inspector HQ, no evidence you went to the main office and asked to pay in cash, and no evidence you decided to park elsewhere,' Williams said.
'If you can't pay, don't park there.'
Griffiths told Yahoo Finance he felt the magistrate was fairly lenient and "incredibly helpful" in getting his head around how court matters are handled.
He launched a GoFundMe before his case was brought to court to help him with legal costs.
The 21-year-old raised nearly $3,400.
However, he admitted it would be "incredibly difficult" to appeal the decision and try to take it any higher.
What did the university say about the case?
Before the matter was heard in Wollongong Local Court, UoW maintained it had ways for students to pay for parking in a variety of ways.
"UOW still retains parking ticket machines that accept cash, including at each of the four major casual car parks on the Wollongong Campus," they told Yahoo Finance.
"There are also card-only machines, which provide another alternative to CellOPark."
They added that cash payments comprised of less than 1 per cent of all transactions for parking, and more than 80 per cent of parking payments are done through the app.
UOW said the CellOPark app provided a more "flexible" payment system for students because you would only pay for the time you were there, rather than fork out for a full or half-day rates.
Law student said parking fine fight is bigger than just him
Griffiths told Yahoo Finance it was important to him to fight the $97 fine, as he felt cash needed to retain a space in the payments landscape in Australia.
While cash use has been steadily declining over the last decade, the law student backed calls for essential services to be forced to accept and carry physical money.
The government is working on bringing in legislation that would mandate that concept.
"If you're in an essential industry, there are people that rely on cash," he said.
"It's a security net for people to be able to engage in the economy and buy the things they need."
The student believed a car park constituted an essential service because there are only so many available, and it's not normal to have another one with a different payment structure next door.Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten
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