VICTORIAN businesses found intentionally flouting the Chief Health Officer’s rules – such as the requirement to use QR code systems – will be slapped with a new $1652 on-the-spot fine.
Venues and facilities are required to maintain an electronic record-keeping system for all visitors – which is critical for ensuring quick contact tracing in the event of a new coronavirus case, as demonstrated last week.
During the government’s three-week COVID-safe Blitz last month, more than 4000 hospitality and retail businesses were checked for compliance across metropolitan and regional Victoria.
More than 165 enforcement notices were issued throughout the operation and an additional 300 verbal warnings – with common issues including failure to use QR codes, no COVID-safe plan and no density quotient signs.
The government says enforcement checks in recent days continue to show a worrying trend of complacency, with 37 per cent of businesses visited flagged as non-compliant with QR code check-in rules. It says the new on-the-spot fine allows authorised officers to issue an immediate penalty, which will deter businesses from intentionally ignoring Chief Health Officer rules and “putting Victoria’s hardwon gains at risk”.
Authorised officers will be out and about throughout May and June, targeting compliance with record-keeping and QR code requirements.
Businesses flouting the rules will be issued with the $1652 fine, along with an improvement notice which triggers a follow-up visit.
If there are repeated breaches, an additional $9913 fine can be issued and businesses may be prosecuted in court for continued, blatant or wilful non-compliance.
The government says this approach will ensure the focus continues to be on helping businesses to follow the rules, while still enforcing fines for blatant breaches.
The new fine bolsters the mandatory switch to the free state government QR code service through the Service Victoria app from May 28.
More than 91,000 Victorian organisations have signed up for the free Victorian government QR code service across 125,000 different locations – with more than 21.5 million check-ins – an average of 280,000 a day.
Acting Police and Emergency Services Minister Danny Pearson said it was essential every Victorian checked in when visiting a business, to help contact tracers quickly find those who could be at risk of coronavirus exposure.
“While most businesses are doing the right thing, those who aren’t are letting down every Victorian who has sacrificed to get us where we are today,” he said.
“This new on-the-spot $1652 fine sends a clear message that we will not tolerate any business ignoring its responsibility to help Victoria stay safe and stay open.”
