Just seven fines were issued during lockdown restrictions in England for people contravening rules not to stay overnight at a friend or relative’s house without reasonable excuse, latest figures show.
The seven fixed penalty notices (FPNs) were among 16,021 issued in England between March 27 and August 17, while a further 2,662 were handed out in Wales.
It means 18,683 notices were issued in total, although some were for more than one reason.
The vast majority of the notices (13,980) were issued by police for breaching restriction of movement rules under the Health Protection Regulations 2020, designed to help stop the spread of coronavirus.
Some 4,430 fines were issued for meeting up in public in groups of more than two, before restrictions were later eased.
The data was released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), taking in figures from constabularies across England and Wales.
It also showed that two penalties were issued for contravening rules not to participate in a gathering of more than 30 people.
And three fines were issued by police to those failing to self-isolate after arriving in England – in Lincolnshire, Merseyside and Sussex.
Separate figures from the Home Office, issued on August 14, showed that nine fines had been issued at the UK border since quarantine restrictions were introduced.
The NPCC figures show there was a general upward trend in rules being broken in the first period of the lockdown restrictions, peaking in the middle of April.
The NPCC said there was then “generally a flatter trend through the rest of April and early May”, adding that a “considerable reduction in enforcement activity” had been noted since as restrictions progressively eased.
Just 11 notices were issued in the last full week, ending August 13.
