The issue with small fines is that they can very easily be cheaper than doing the right thing. If you saved money by stealing breakfast every morning for a year

The issue with small fines is that they can very easily be cheaper than doing the right thing. If you saved money by stealing breakfast every morning for a year, and the only punishment was a fine for the cost of 5 breakfasts, then there's nothing legally enforced discouraging you from having 360 free breakfasts a year.