Police in south Wales say they have not issued £1,000 fines to people who have travelled outside their county borough to shop, or for any other reason.
A spokesperson for South Wales Police said it was "misinformation" that people had been fined for shopping outside their county.
They issued a statement on the penalties and breaches of the law on their Facebook page following a rumour that police were checking cars going into Cyfarthfa Retail Park in Merthyr for any out of area number plates.
A spokesperson for the force said: "We do not and have not issued £1,000 fines to people who have travelled outside of their county borough to shop or for any other reason. This is misinformation.
"However, we would remind the public that current legislation does state they should stay within the confines of their local authority area, unless they have a reasonable excuse."
Failure to follow current legislation could result in enforcement action, though they say this remains a "last resort".
The force said: "We can issue fines. These start at £60 and double for each further breach. Fines in Wales can rise to £1,920 for repeat offenders.
"Existing policing powers are still available to us to help us police during the pandemic. For example, vehicles can be stopped using existing traffic legislation and we can make ASB referrals and issue Section 35 dispersal notices.
"Failure to follow self-isolation requirements can result in a £1,000 fine. Fines of up to £10,000 can be issued – and have been issued by our force – for organisers of unlicensed music events (UMEs)."
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