Driver fined $544 for little known road act
A Mercedes driver has copped a massive fine after illegally transporting a ladder in the back of his car.
The motorist thought he snagged a bargain on Gumtree, buying a ladder from someone who lived only a few streets away.
But when he went to take the ladder home after placing it in the backseat of his car, the ladder was protruding almost one metre out the window.
Highway Patrol officers in Sydney's west stopped the driver who said, "I picked it up from someone on Gumtree, I’m just going down the road".
He was $544 and lost three demerit points by the roadside, with the short distance of travel between his purchase location and destination meaning nothing to police due to the dangerous nature of the act.
The driver claims he "didn't know" it was an offence to drive with a protruding load, despite every state and territory handed an on-the-spot fine if any items stick out of a moving vehicle.
"Due to the danger posed to other road users as well as the driver himself, he was issued with an infringement," NSW Police said, explaining that the driver was able to disassemble the ladder and store it "more suitably" in the car before taking off again.
In NSW, the fine for driving with a protruding load will set a motorist back $349. Across the country, fines fall between $200 to $400 for drivers of light vehicles, however, those in heavy vehicles can pay thousands.
Protruding loads can alter the weight distribution of a car and make it unstable and unsafe to drive, reducing a driver's control, while also posing a risk of hitting others on the road, pedestrians or cyclists.
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