In France a woman has received a hefty fine for her cat who was supposedly too loud while travelling on a train, despite the fact it had its own paid ticket
A woman has been handed a £100 fine after a fellow train passenger complained that her cat “miaowed too loudly”.
Monet the white cat was travelling alongside their owner Camille and her partner Pierre on August 21 when a disgruntled passenger lodged a complaint, leading to a conductor dishing out a fine. Despite the fact the pet was travelling in a carrier, as the service requires, with its own €7 (£6) ticket, they received a €110 (£100) fine.
The penalty fee was handed out as the couple and their cat travelled on a high-speed train between Vannes, Brittany, and Paris, despite Camille’s claim that Monet had only “miaowed a bit” at the start of their trip.
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She local news outlet BFM: “After a passenger complained, the conductor came and fined us €110. It’s a shame that the SNCF allows itself to fine people who are simply travelling with their animals and who are respecting all the rules.”
Camille received a document outlining the reason for the fine, stating that “several customers” complained about the noise. It further claimed that she was being prosecuted as a result of “troubling public order”. The fine has sparked a raging debate online, with some travellers criticising rules on the French rail network as overly harsh.
It read: “The customer is travelling with a cat that won’t stop miaowing. After complaints from several customers, we have asked her to move.
“She has refused. Because the cat is noisy, we are starting legal procedures for troubling public order due to noise,” The Daily Mail reports. Those in support of the state rail operator (SNCF) have praised the decision, which enforces a quiet atmosphere in the carriages.
However, the cat’s owner, Camille, has claimed that Monet only “miaowed a bit at the start” of their train journey through France, BFM news channel reports.
SNCF has since said that Camille refused to move to an emptier coach, which it claims would have been a “simple and common-sense solution” to allow for “peace” for all involved. According to the rail operator, the fine was as a result of a disturbance she caused, as opposed to the miaowing sounds alone, saying the cat provoked only “acute tensions”.
This is not an isolated incident, as railway staff in France are known for being particularly strict. A passenger in February was also fined a whopping €200 (£172) for having his phone on loudspeaker during a conversation inside of Nantes station.
Additionally, pilgrims were stopped in June by police in Paris for ‘causing public disturbance’ following a religious trip to Chartres Cathedral because they sang a hymn at Montparnasse station. Adding to the harsh rules of public travel, Transport for London (TFL) has now made a statement to say it is targeting the ‘disruptive behaviour’ of passengers who play music and those using loudspeakers.
They further explained that these behaviours are considered by most passengers as a ‘nuisance’, and others found the additional noise to be stressful.