A man from Kingston has been fined £5,000 after he moored his boat on a stretch of the River Thames owned by the Environment Agency (EA).

Stephen Crowe moored his 85-foot, 'unpowered' houseboat Hope IV to EA owned riverbanks in Walton for what the agency called "periods far longer than the maximum 24 hours allowed on that part of the Thames".

A court heard how the environment authority subsequently began issuing him with notices as far back as May and June of 2019 directing Crowe to move the vessel on.

Eventually, the EA launched legal proceedings after a Harbour Master Notice of Directions was not complied with.

Colin Chiverton, environment manager for the River Thames EA branch, pointed out that "the Environment Agency owns limited sections of riverbank across 144 miles of the non-tidal Thames, the majority of our customers do comply with our mooring conditions, but this is an important enforcement outcome for all river users and local communities." Adding:

"We provide and maintain some limited purpose built short-stay public moorings, to encourage pleasure boating on the river and to enable safe mooring at designated locations. Our public moorings are valuable and available for all boat owners to use but subject to conditions of use, this is to ensure fair access for all pleasure boat owners.

"Crowe was given countless chances to comply with our mooring conditions and formal directions to move his boat but failed to. We strongly advise all boat owners whether buying or bringing a boat on to the River, to give serious consideration to the size and type of vessel and how to comply with landowner mooring requirements before committing to owning and keeping a boat on the River."

At Staines magistrates’ court on July 23, Crowe pleaded guilty to an offence contrary to Section 84 Thames Conservancy Act 1932 (not complying with the directions of a Harbour Master).

He told the court he had sold the boat in June 2021 and was given a Conditional Discharge for 12 months and ordered to pay £5,000 towards the Environment Agency’s costs, and a victim surcharge of £22.