Many know: you have been flashed, expect the fine – but when you look at the bill, you are perplexed at first. This much? In addition to the fine, there are often legal costs that often cost more than the fine itself.
If a traffic violation is still light enough to be fined, but not so light that it can be processed in the so-called fine procedure, a hefty surcharge will be charged. This is the case, for example, if you speed between 15 and 24 km/h in the city – or between 25 and 34 km/h on the highway.
Each case is handled by a prosecutor. And the driver has to pay for that. SVP National Councilor Mike Egger (30) wants to change that.
50 francs is enough
The current arrangement makes no sense, he says. According to Egger, the laws are clear-cut for these offenses and the penalties are precisely regulated in the fines. There is therefore no reason not to deal with this in the simplified procedure. Egger has submitted a proposal to parliament. The legal costs should be limited to 50 francs.
Racers are not to be spared
“My main motivation is to relieve the burden on the judiciary. A prosecutor has yet to investigate these procedures,” says Egger. At the same time, the judiciary is overburdened. Moreover: The fine must be the punishment. Not the litigation costs.
He assures that he is not concerned with protecting speeders. “If someone is really speeding, a ticket should continue to be withdrawn,” says Egger. Speeding offenses should continue to be dealt with in the ordinary process, ie with the cooperation of the public prosecutor. After all, it is also about another article of the law.
A relaxation of speeding fines has recently been discussed in parliament. This caused such an outcry that Parliament balked. Speeders face at least another year in prison. For example, a speed demon is someone who breaks through the 50 zone at more than 100 km/h or has a speed of more than 70 km/h in the 30 zone.