Less known rules have left British travelers fined £25 million in just one year, and thousands of people are trying to do the right thing.
MailOnline can reveal that the British were fined £25 million in just one year.
Travelers were fined thousands of pounds in a lesser-known and increasingly controversial plan to suppress the flood of immigrants who infiltrated the UK.
Under the scheme, every illegal immigrant who finds hiding in the UK can be fined up to £10,000 even if they don’t know their existence.
If no secret contestants are found, the driver can also pay up to £6,000.
Criticized, criticized for encouraging people to report illegal immigrants they found – because by telling authorities they are open to accept bumper fines.
The figures obtained from the characters displayed by the Freedom of Information Request show that only one person who was fined successfully canceled the penalty.
Since January 1 last year, the Home Office has imposed a fine of £25,662,299 under the civil penalty scheme for secret contestants.
Hauliers are usually the target of most fines, but the plan is under increasing scrutiny after a publicly friendly couple reported a shaky punishment in their van – sparking widespread surprises, even the intervention of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Joanne and Adrian Fenton (pictured) were initially ordered by the Home Office to pay £1,500 when they reported an immigrant behind the RV after returning from France.
The vibrant public couple called police immediately after they found illegal immigrants
Police arrived at the couple’s house in Highbridge, Essex. Just over two months later
Adrian and Joanne Fenton, from Heybridge Essex, were fined £1,500 by the Home Office after reporting an immigrant in the RV after returning from France.
The couple was shocked to find a sultanian man in a bag covered with a bicycle rack in their RV and called police immediately after moving away from the convoy in Calais, who took the man away for disposal.
However, just over two months later, the two were fined because they did not “check out that the contestants who had no secrets were hidden” in the camper.
Mr Fenton called on the border forces by making an “opposition”, detailing why he believed the punishment was unfair.
Despite growing public pressure, their “responsibility” has been abandoned.
A letter from the Border Force said: “The objection has been carefully considered and the Secretary of State has decided on your responsibility.
“However, after senior officials reviewed the case, the fine level of each secret entrant or the person hiding as a secret entrant has been modified to £0 in the UK.
They are not the only innocent couple who are unconsciously trapped in legal errors, and retired ambulance service personnel have previously warned Britons to be highly alert during the channel crossing.
Great-grandfather Peter Hughes (photo with his wife Anne) was initially fined £6,000 for a man found hiding in his small camping trailer in the port of Calais
A young Sudanese man (pictured) was discovered by French border troops officials in a small trailer hidden in a modified RV in a couple’s seat
Number of fines referrals based on the civil penalty plan for secret contestants
Great-grandfather Peter Hughes, 75, of Droylsden, Droylsden, was initially fined £6,000 after a sultanian man was found hiding in his small camping trailer in Port Calais, France.
The amount was eventually reduced to £150 after the appeal was accompanied by huge political and media pressure – although he and his wife Anne knew nothing about the existence of immigration.
Of the nearly 6,000 fines issued since the beginning of last year, only 2,295 have so far, although some are still controversial or have not been paid.
Although 127 appeals have been filed against the fine, only one succeeded.
The victory appeal caused the Home Office to revoke the Kents’ £3,000 fine after unconsciously driving two Sudanese immigrants through Calais camper.
Lisa Russell and Geoff Evans were stopped by French border officials after returning on holiday and were fined despite “not knowing” a man and teenager were hiding on the bike rack of their van.
However, their appeal was the only successful success in 15 months, when border forces “exercising general discretion” and revoking their fines.
A letter from the Border Force said: “After the case was reviewed, we decided to amend the fine and concluded that you have proved that you comply with the regulations within the scope of the request.
This chart compares the number of immigrants trying to arrive by vehicles and boats
The Secretary of State chooses to exercise general discretion, in which case your fine has been reduced to £0. ”
The fines for others were reduced, and a transport company paid £7,566 after the original £48,000 bill.
According to a report by immigration and border regulators, about 5,000 “secret participants” were found on British border controls in Calais, Coquill and Dunkirk last year. Inevitably, others will try to evade inspection.
Meanwhile, with the boat under Keir Starmer, reaching more than 30,000 immigrants in the UK – as the number of people arriving continues to exceed any other year or Prime Minister.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Home Affairs said: “We are totally committed to stopping people from entering the country illegally and combating smugglers, which is why the secret contestant civil penalties program is there to ensure that drivers take all reasonable steps to stop irregular immigration.
“We understand that the recipient of the penalty may not agree to the fine. The option to explicitly file appeals and trigger reviews in support documents. ”
