Nearly $100 million worth of fines and reparation orders were cancelled by New Zealand courts in the last financial year - 12 percent of the total $806 million outstanding.
Figures released to the New Zealand Herald showed the amount wiped due to offenders either not paying by the enforcement date or being declared unable to pay rose $14 million on the previous year to $95.1 million.
Five years ago the figure was $31.6 million.
The trend looks set to continue this financial year with $50.1 million wiped in the first five months from July.
Collections general manager Bryce Patchell said non-payment of fines usually resulted in a sentence of community work, home detention or prison.
In 2008/09 Wellington topped the list for wiped fines with $10.4 million, followed by Canterbury with $10 million.
The larger fines were owed by companies which often saw totals run into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Mr Patchell said a company's assets and income could be seized, but limited liability status meant the courts could not touch assets belonging to company directors or their personal incomes once the business stopped trading.
