‘£200 COVID FINE FOR DELIVERING A GIFT!’
A Well-meaning man who dropped off a gift during his daily exercise has received a £200 fine for breaking lockdown rules.
John Bradshaw was on his regular walk from his home in Leek to Endon when he delivered a book and DVD to a house.
He also hand-delivered a small number of letters through the letter-boxes of other homes. The 59-year-old said he adhered to social distancing at all times and wore a mask when he dropped off the present.
But the following day he was visited by police who had received a complaint that he had breached Covid-19 regulations.
After receiving advice from police, Mr Bradshaw believed the matter had been allowed to rest until – two months later – he received a fixed penalty notice in the post.
Mr Bradshaw, of Cruso Street, Leek, said: “I walked to Endon as part of my exercise. I’m a member of the Survive Together group in Leek and there have been a lot of people going out of their way to help each other with small gestures. I have received that myself and wanted to give back in the same context.
“I dropped off the gift, I was fully socially-distanced and I was wearing a mask. I was categorically not posing a risk.
“The next day police came to my house and said they had received a complaint. I felt intimidated, to be honest. I didn’t think that giving a gift was breaching the rules.”
Mr Bradshaw heard nothing else following the incident, which happened at the end of January, until he received a fixed penalty notice – dated March 22 – through the post.
He said: “I was surprised, then I felt angry. I did what I did in good faith, this is ridiculous. To take this action is a waste of time and money.
“By paying the notice it is implying that I have done something wrong and I don’t believe I have. I intend to go to court.
“I want to warn other people about this and also see if other people have been in the same situation.”
Staffordshire Police say Mr Bradshaw dropped off letters or parcels to 20 people which could have been done in a ‘safer’ way.
The force also claimed one of the recipients had lodged the complaint because they had family who were shielding. A spokesman said: “We can confirm a fixed penalty notice was issued to a man who admitted delivering letters and parcels by hand to more than 20 people, on their doorsteps, on the same day despite the national Stay at Home coronavirus restrictions.
“This involved knocking on doors and handing over letters and parcels directly to the recipient, without the required social distancing. We received complaints about this – in one case from a recipient who had relatives who were shielding.
“When officers spoke to the man, he agreed that this was not a necessary journey and parcels could have been delivered more safely in an alternative way. He was therefore issued with a £200 fixed penalty notice.”