Norfolk Broads boaters pay £11,113 after taken to court

But it seems like the offence of 'letting off' is making an unwelcome return to the Norfolk Broads.

The arcane phrase refers to casting off the boats of other sailors without their permission and setting them adrift.

It formed the central plot of Arthur Ransome's children's classic The Big Six - part of the Swallows and Amazon series - in which members of the Coot Club are accused of 'letting off' the boats of holidaymakers. 

The cover of Arthur Ransome's book, The Big Six, which is set in the Norfolk Broads (Image: Wikipedia)

New figures reveal that one person has been prosecuted by the Broads Authority for the offence this summer and fined £2,974 for the crime.

BOATERS FINED 

The offender is one of ten fined for a series of offences on the Broads, which also include not paying toll fees and overstaying at moorings.

A sailing boat and a holiday cruiser on the River Bure at Horning on a fine early October day (Image: Newsquest)

Latest figures show in total, the ten paid out more than £11,000 after being taken to court by the authority.

Of the ten, eight had not paid their toll fees and were told to stump up £5,949.64 in fines, victim surcharge, court costs and compensation.

One boater had to pay £2,190 for overstaying on their mooring.

The highest fine was for the offender prosecuted for 'letting off'.

Boating on the River Bure at Hoveton (Image: Denise Bradley)

READ MORE: Boaters blasting Rick Astley get reported to Coastguard and Broads Authority

'LETTING GO'

The incident is thought to have involved casting off a hire boat in Great Yarmouth, without permission of the holidaymakers.

The individual involved was found to have broken a byelaw which states no person other than a Broads Authority officer shall "without reasonable excuse let go or attempt to let go part of a mooring line of any vessel except with the permission of the vessel's master".

The offender was ordered to pay a £660 fine, £850 in costs awarded, a £264 victim surcharge and £1,200 in compensation.

PC Tedder confronts members of the Coot Club on Horning staithe, as an angry crowd look on (Image: BBC)

THE BIG SIX

The antics are reminiscent of Arthur Ransome's book, The Big Six, the ninth in the Swallows and Amazons series, which was published in 1940.

Set on the Norfolk Broads, the three young crew of the Death and Glory - all members of the Coot Club - find themselves in hot water after being framed for setting moored boats adrift.

Boats cast adrift on Ranworth Broad, on the BBC dramatisation of The Big Six (Image: BBC)

A group of their friends - who call themselves the Big Six - begin investigating the offences to clear their names.Members of the Coot Club aboard the Death and Glory (Image: BBC)

They eventually set a trap which allows them to unmask the real offenders and exonerate the Death and Glories.The real culprits are caught in the act casting off the Catchalot after the Big Six laid an elaborate trap for them (Image: BBC)

The book was later turned into a BBC series which was filmed on the waterways and aired in 1984.

The Broads Authority has said people found to have not paid their toll fee are only taken to court as a last resort (Image: Archant)

'LAST RESORT'

The BA has said its decision to prosecute for non-payment of tolls is "always a last resort" and it is only used when all other conversations and avenues have failed.

"Where boat owners are genuinely struggling to pay their tolls, we will listen and work with them," a spokesman said.

Money raised from toll fees is used to fund all the maintenance, dredging and mooring improvements it carries out on the waterways and it is the only navigation authority in the UK that does not receive central funding for this.

Costs awarded through prosecutions are used to offset legal expenses, while the fines and victim surcharges are not paid to the BA.