Soham man who did not register his vessel with the Environment Agency has been landed with fines and costs of nearly £1,400.
A Soham man who did not register his vessel with the Environment Agency has been landed with fines and costs of nearly £1,400. - Credit: Archant
A Soham man who did not register his vessel with the Environment Agency has been landed with fines and costs of nearly £1,400.
Anthony Hague of Bushell Lane, was found guilty in absence and given a fine of £220. He was also ordered to pay £250 in costs, £873.71 compensation and a victim surcharge of £30. The total penalty was £1,373.71. His vessel is Quest II.
It is a legal requirement for boaters to register any vessel they keep, use or let for hire on Environment Agency waterways, and to clearly display a valid registration plate. Vessel owners must also have the appropriate Boat Safety Scheme certificates and insurance, as part of the registration process.
Four other boaters from across the area were also fined.
Glen Wheatley of Farcet in Peterborough, Geoffrey Turner of Holbeach in Lincolnshire, Stuart Baker of Hockwold in Norfolk and Phillip Sunman of Eynesbury in Cambridgeshire all failed to register their vessels, as required by law.
Their cases were heard at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court and resulted in fines and costs totalling £5,166.10. Wheatley was ordered to pay a total of £827.99, Turner £856.98, Baker £898.71, Sunman £1,208.71, and Hague £1,371.71.
Nathan Arnold, partnerships and development team leader at the Environment Agency, said: “Our historic and precious waterways are an important part of our nation’s heritage and are enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people every year.
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“A significant part of caring for them, protecting them, and ensuring people continue to enjoy them is funded by boaters paying their way. Those who don’t contribute as they should are threatening the future of our waterways – and we won’t hesitate to take action against them.
“As well as not contributing to the upkeep of waterways, unregistered boats can be unsafe, hazardous to other river users, and a pollution risk to the local environment and wildlife.”
The Environment Agency looks after 353 miles of navigable waterways in the Anglian network, which includes the Ancholme, Black Sluice, Glen, Welland, Nene, Great Ouse and Stour, as well as associated locks and navigation facilities like moorings, showers and toilets.
More information about boating and waterways, including registering vessels, is available at http://www.gov.uk/ea. If you suspect a boat is illegal, please contact the Environment Agency on 03708 506 506 or by emailing our Waterways team.
