Only 40% of court fines from 2017 and 2018 have been paid
Only 40% of court fines handed out in 2017 and 2018 have been paid so far.
According to details released under the Freedom of Information Act, €14m in fines are still outstanding from the two years.
In 2017, just over €22m worth of court fines were imposed across Ireland, but only €10.9m worth were paid, a payment rate of less than 49%.
The following year, fines worth €21.2m were handed out by judges in Irish courts but just €6.9m have been recovered so far.
It is a payment rate of only 32%.
Athlone solicitor John Keogh claims it is down to a system introduced in 2016 that cut the number of people jailed for refusing to pay.
"I'm a bit surprised by levels of non-payment of the fines," said Mr Keogh.
"I think that they should perhaps look at going back to the old system.
"For all the faults of the old system, it perhaps was a better system from the point of view of ensuring that the penalty was imposed."
Limerick had a particularly poor payment rate in 2017 with only 22% of fines paid, while Clonmel's was 26%.
For 2018, there has been a 26% collection rate in Dublin with nearly €4.6m worth of fines unpaid so far.
In Galway, the collection rate last year was 32% and it was 35% in Cork city.
