Dispute a Notice of Administrative Penalty

Overview

If you are a driver who wishes to dispute your Immediate Roadside Sanction (IRS) Notice of Administrative Penalty, you can request a review through SafeRoads Alberta.

Grounds to cancel

Financial hardship and inconvenience are not grounds for cancellation of your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty.

An adjudicator cannot consider arguments such as you:

• do not have the financial means to pay for the fines
• need your vehicle to get to and from work
• need your vehicle to take your kids to school or a family member to a medical appointment

The grounds to cancel an IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty can be found in section 4 of the SafeRoads Alberta Regulation.

Eligibility and costs

To request a review, you must submit the request within 7 days of the date the IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty was issued.

Costs

• You must pay a non-refundable review fee of $150.
• If you choose to be represented by a lawyer or agent, you are responsible for any costs for the representative.
• If you choose to use an interpreter, you are responsible for any costs for the interpreter.
• If you use a translator, you are responsible for any costs for the translator.

At your review

The adjudicator will: 

• consider your arguments and representations
• consider all supporting documents provided by you or your representative, as well as:
  • documents provided by the law enforcement agency within the required timelines
  • technical materials
  • the Traffic Safety Act
  • the Provincial Administrative Penalties Act
  • associated regulations

After conducting a review, the adjudicator will confirm or cancel your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty.

If you were issued an IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty for a second or subsequent occurrence in error, the adjudicator can – upon proof of the error – adjust the occurrence level down so that the penalty is reduced.

The adjudicator’s decision will be provided in writing within 30 days from the date you were issued your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty.

You will be notified by your preferred contact method when the adjudicator’s decision is available in the SafeRoads portal.

If you did not choose email or text as your preferred method of contact, a copy of the decision will be mailed to the preferred mailing address as identified in the SafeRoads portal. SafeRoads Alberta has no control over Canada Post delivery dates, so you may receive the mailed copy of the decision after the 30 days.

SafeRoads Alberta decisions for an IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty are subject to publication on the Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) website.

Request for late review

If you did not request a review within 7 days of the date your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty was issued, or your review was deemed abandoned, you can submit a request for a late review up to 12 months from the date the IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty was issued.

To request a late review, you must:

• submit the request through the SafeRoads portal or at a participating Alberta registry agent
• provide the reason for your request for late review including how your circumstances satisfy the prescribed exceptional circumstances set out in Section 10 of the Provincial Administrative Penalties Regulation
• provide all supporting documentation needed to substantiate your claim
• pay the non-refundable review fee of $50

You will be notified of the decision to approve or deny your late review request through the SafeRoads portal.

If your request for a late review is approved, the date of the decision will be deemed the new date of issuance of the IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty. You will have 7 days from this date to request a review of your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty.

See Late review request: information sheet and Late reviews: overview program policy for additional details.

Late evidence application

A late evidence application may be submitted if you have requested a review to be held within the standard 21-day timeline, then abandon the review in order to seek a late review for the purpose of introducing late evidence.

A late evidence application is a type of late review request that is specifically assessed under the prescribed exceptional circumstances set out in Section 10(3)(b) of the Provincial Administrative Penalties Regulation.

A late evidence application should be submitted once the evidence is available and can be submitted up to 12 months from the date the IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty was issued.

Submitting a late evidence application does not guarantee that you will be granted a late review.

See the Late reviews: late evidence application program policy and the Late reviews: late evidence application information sheet for more information.

To request a late evidence application, you must:

• submit the request through the SafeRoads portal or at a participating Alberta registry agent
• provide the reason for your request including how your circumstances satisfy the prescribed exceptional circumstances set out in Section 10(3)(b) of the Provincial Administrative Penalties Regulation
• provide any required supporting documentation including a copy of the late evidence
• pay the non-refundable review fee of $50

You will be notified of the decision to accept or deny your request through the SafeRoads portal. 

If your request for a late review to submit late evidence is approved, the date of the decision will be deemed the new date of issuance of the IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty. You will have 7 days from this date to request a review of your IRS Notice of Administrative Penalty.

Judicial review

You may seek judicial review of a decision rendered by SafeRoads Alberta for either a request for review or a request for late review by filing an originating application with the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta, in accordance with section 24(2) of the Provincial Administrative Penalties Act and serving on the Director no later than 30 days after the date on which the decision was received.

Provincial Administrative Penalties Act, S.A. 2020, c. P-30.8

Judicial review

24(1) Subject to subsection (2), no decision or order of the Director or adjudicator is to be questioned or reviewed in any court by application for judicial review or otherwise, and no order is to be made, process entered or proceedings taken in any court whether by way of certiorari, injunction, declaratory judgment, prohibition, mandamus, quo warranto, application to quash or set aside or otherwise, to question, review, prohibit or restrain any decision or order of the Director or adjudicator or any of the Director’s or adjudicator’s proceedings.

(2) A decision or order of the Director or adjudicator may be questioned or reviewed by way of an application for judicial review seeking an order in the nature of certiorari or mandamus if the application is filed with the Court of King’s Bench and served on the Director or adjudicator no later than 30 days after the date on which the decision or order was received by the applicant.

(3) On an application for judicial review under subsection (2), the standard of review is reasonableness.

For information on how to seek a judicial review, visit the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta Filing Procedure: Judicial Review of Saferoads Decisions.

If you require additional information or support related to filing an application for judicial review, see Support in preparing court forms or contact Alberta Justice’s Court and Justice Services by calling 1-855-738-4747.

The preferred method for serving filed documents is by email at [email protected]. Note: this email is only for serving Court filed documents.

Additional authorized methods of service can be found in Part 11 of the Alberta Rules of Court.

Contact

Connect with SafeRoads Alberta:

Contact SafeRoads Alberta

Related

• Impaired driving laws
• Federal impaired driving information
• Federal impaired driving laws