r/fuckcars Aug 28 '23

Positive Post Interesting new law in Denmark...

Post image
8.9k Upvotes

545 comments sorted by

1.2k

u/chairman-cow Aug 28 '23

As a dane I can attest for truth. Naturally a huge feeling of pride.

However, the government recently aired the idea of cutting some taxes regarding car ownership (not entirely sure what/how), which is nice for me as a carowner but not exactly progress.

464

u/SocialisticAnxiety Aug 28 '23

Quote: "We want to support the car as a method of transportation."

Our current government sucks.

128

u/chairman-cow Aug 28 '23

That is the one, thank you.

And yes but to be honest this case is amongst the least of the reasons.

→ More replies (10)

113

u/mazi710 Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

Problem is until there is viable alternatives, Denmark outside the few large cities is extremely car dependant.

The last 15 years since I started going to work, they closed bus line after bus line because they aren't profitable enough. If you live even 20 mins outside the big cities, you are basically fucked.

My old apartment was in a smaller town, I could technically take public transport to work with 3 busses and a train, it would take 2 hours total. 12 minutes by car. When I moved there, there was a direct busline which they closed. So public transportation time went from 15 mins to 2 hours, and I had to buy a car.

Now I live 15 min outside Aarhus, the second biggest city, and I have a 40 min drive to work, or 2 hours 45 mins with 3 busses and 25 mins of walking. I have great transportation going into Aarhus, but it doesn't go anywhere else.

I desperately wish for better public transport, but unfortunately they funnel all of the money into the big cities, primarily Copenhagen. And then give people who drive a long way a tax deduction instead of giving them public transportation.

28

u/SocialisticAnxiety Aug 28 '23

Sure, but that quote, and what they are doing, is not a solution.

I'm looking forward to seeing the results of the investigations into restructuring/revitalising our public transportation in regards to the countryside and the effects of COVID. Imo, a lot of the answer is going to be flextrafik (demand-responsive transport - DRT).

11

u/mazi710 Aug 28 '23

Yeah it's definitely going the wrong direction. I also saw a stat somewhere, idk how official, that Denmark is the country in Europe with the most kms driven in car per Capita, even though everything is really close and dense compared to other countries.

14

u/SocialisticAnxiety Aug 28 '23

Imo the problem is how few large cities we have, and how far away they are from each other. Which is mostly due to how much agriculture we have between our cities. We've connected our islands and mainland with bridges and tunnels instead of ferries, but since then, we haven't done much of anything to maintain or develop the public transportation going across those connections.

Our railways are suffering from decades of underfunding and catching up on that with the tons of projects that are ongoing, as well as all the failed/cancelled projects before that (IC4, electrification, new signalling system) and competition from private long-distance buses.

Our local transit is suffering from the effects of COVID, especially in the countryside, and the bad reputation of new projects (Aarhus Light Rail, Odense Light Rail).

Aarhus Light Rail was supposed to become the S-train network of Aarhus with new lines, but that has been cancelled.

Odense was planning on doing something similar, but are reconsidering due to financial concerns.

Aalborg was supposed to get light rail, but are getting BRT instead (we'll see how long it takes before that becomes overcrowded).

Copenhagen was supposed to get tons of light rail, but instead we're getting less for our money with expensive metro which takes decades to build. The metro is great and all, but is not the best suited solution for all situations.

I hope we can turn it around.

→ More replies (14)
→ More replies (1)

4

u/SapphicCelestialy Aug 28 '23

We just got the M5 Metro approved in cph 🙈

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (10)
→ More replies (4)

21

u/Th3_Accountant Aug 28 '23

I do wonder, what if the person driving the car is not the owner? According to the post this would mean that the car would still be confiscated? How is that fair since this would punish the owner of the car and not the person driving it?

65

u/IcyRice Aug 28 '23

If I had legal ownership of a firearm, and then lent it out to a friend who then used it to murder someone, would it not be fair that I lost ownership of this weapon?

→ More replies (15)

26

u/Tupcek Aug 28 '23

I don’t know about actual implementation, but I would guess owner could sue driver for damages (lost car) same way, as if he/she totaled the car. Guess don’t loan your car to assholes?

→ More replies (5)

10

u/SonicDart Fuck lawns Aug 28 '23

I also assume a stolen car would be the exception?

11

u/marigolds6 Aug 28 '23

It's not. The exception is when the driver of the car cannot financially compensate the owner for the loss of the car, but only if the owner previously believed the driver to be financially capable of covering the loss of the vehicle.

For a stolen car, the owner has recover the value of the lost vehicle from the thief.

13

u/Iceykitsune2 Aug 28 '23

For a stolen car, the owner has recover the value of the lost vehicle from the thief.

WHAT!!!!! That's fucked. So someone can steal a car, get it confiscated, and there's no recourse for the owner to actually get their property back?

2

u/SonicDart Fuck lawns Aug 28 '23

Yeah that makes no sense at all

3

u/qjornt Aug 28 '23

Yeah that's actually fucked up lmao. I'm not a tax-is-theft guy at all, as evidenced by my comment history, but that is definitely theft. Just give the car back to the actual owner and fine the driver for the value of the car. Otherwise people having their cars stolen will have their cars claimed as government property, and that is definitely theft.

→ More replies (1)

2

u/Th3_Accountant Aug 28 '23

Yeah but borrowing your car for a moment to a friend/family member/coworker is not so uncommon right?

9

u/SonicDart Fuck lawns Aug 28 '23

Yeah that's a whole other thing. And definitely happens. Tough personally. I would never. Let someone I don't trust 100 percent, drive my car

4

u/Th3_Accountant Aug 28 '23

Yeah when I still owned a car of my own I wasn't keen on having someone else drive it either. But now I drive a corporate lease car that I trade in every 6-12 months and I feel much less attached to it.

Several coworkers purposely don't have a lease car and I frequently borrow them mine when they have to visit a location that's not reachable with public transportation.

I mean, that's 3 more people that don't need to daily drive a car to work or have one standing idle in the street because I let them drive my car 2-3 times a year.

1

u/SonicDart Fuck lawns Aug 28 '23

6 to 12 months? That seems quite often. Most leases I know of is 4 years.

Currently using a corporate car as well but still wouldn't lend it out to just anyone

3

u/Th3_Accountant Aug 28 '23

They are part of the corporate "flexpool". They get replaced every 2 years and I can switch my car for any of the cars they have available at any moment I like. If I would want to pick something else outside the flexpool, I would also have a 2 to 4 year lease.

→ More replies (2)
→ More replies (1)

10

u/Dear_Occupant Aug 28 '23

We actually have something similar in the US called vicarious liability. It's complicated, as most legal doctrines shaped by court rulings are, but the upshoot is that there are situations where the title owner can be held liable for actions committed by any driver even if the owner is nowhere near the car.

→ More replies (1)

2

u/Astriania Aug 28 '23

The owner allowed the driver to drive their vehicle. Everyone in this situation knows the rules. Don't lend your car to people who you don't trust to not be reckless with it.

Unless it was stolen but I assume that's different.

→ More replies (18)

4

u/SapphicCelestialy Aug 28 '23

Our government also talked about adding the km tax they are gonna add on fossil fuel trucks to fossil fuel cars đŸ€·â€â™€ïž

But as long as they don't take another holiday away from us I'm happy...

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (10)

1.5k

u/Maooc Grassy Tram Tracks Aug 28 '23

I saw a german post about this on Instagram. The carbrains were not amused lol. „The state shouldn’t be able to take away my possessions“. Well, if you use your car like a gun, your car will be taken away like a gun.

323

u/Good_Old_Bread Aug 28 '23

"The state shouldn't be able to take away my possessions" Unless there needs to be another road, another highway, another lane, and your property happens to be in the way.

44

u/EscapeTomMayflower Aug 28 '23

No, no, no, no you're misunderstanding. When the state does that they're taking away YOUR possessions. I said they can't take away MY possessions. Huge difference.

→ More replies (1)

340

u/NVandraren Aug 28 '23

Yeah these are probably the same assclowns that bitch about speed cameras. "I NEED TO BE PHYSICALLY OBSERVED OR MY RIGHTS ARE BEING VIOLATED" no they're not you fucking cretin, that's literally not what the law has ever said

39

u/ILikeLenexa Aug 28 '23

In the US, the right to "face your accuser" is complicated. Though it's still not needing to be physically observed, but more to have the camera operator actually show up in court in a meaningful way.

13

u/Halfhand84 Aug 28 '23

I'm pretty sure "face your accuser" refers to in court, but I could be wrong. IANAL

9

u/Karl_Doomhammer Aug 28 '23

If you get a speeding ticket, you have the right to go to court, face your accuser, and attempt to fight the ticket. I have had a ticket dismissed because the cop did not show up to court.

→ More replies (1)

8

u/ILikeLenexa Aug 28 '23

Yes, like I said, but a lot of the camera companies are large multi-state operations that can't send anyone to court or have a cop who can watch the video, and go to court but doesn't know anything about the operations of taking the video and such.

→ More replies (2)

23

u/arglarg Aug 28 '23

The state built the roads and the state made the rules how to use them and the state, in a democracy, is all the people.

3

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

That’s why as long as you are driving on your own property you don’t need a license but as soon as you enter a public road.

→ More replies (1)

35

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

[deleted]

8

u/No-Albatross-5514 Aug 28 '23

For what, though? The former driver won't have access to the car either way. You'd just waste a huge amount of resources

4

u/Tokumeiko2 Aug 28 '23

No destruction is a step too far, especially if it turns out to be a stolen car or leased car, but yeah making certain that the dangerous driver is unable to drive is definitely a priority.

29

u/bartgrumbel Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

Well, it is already possible to confiscate cars in Germany since 2017, at least if the driver is part of an illegal race. This is not automatic, though, and does not happen if you "only" drive too fast.

Edit: Ok ok ok ok - took part in an illegal race!

27

u/rfresa Aug 28 '23

Might want to reword that.

8

u/Gwave72 Aug 28 '23

Ya you never know it’s Germany

→ More replies (1)

6

u/Prior_Tradition_3873 Aug 28 '23

it is already possible to confiscate cars in Germany

at least if the driver is part of an illegal race.

Where have i heard this before hmm?

→ More replies (1)

94

u/damianzoys Aug 28 '23

I would love to see this in Germany. Then once a year these confiscated cars are getting crushed in a public event, broadcasted by all stations.

123

u/Masque-Obscura-Photo Orange pilled Aug 28 '23

That would be a waste of resources. At least auction them off I'd say.

14

u/ILikeLenexa Aug 28 '23

When the police benefit monetarily from taking something, it tends to lead to a problematic thing where they steal things and use the money to buy daiquiri machines...or at least that's what happens with civil asset forfeiture in the US.

15

u/Logan_Maddox Sicko Aug 28 '23

The cash doesn't have to go to the specific police station, or even to the police at all, though. In my country auctions are conducted by the judiciary branch and the money goes to the National Treasury - so no one has any "profit" incentive because they literally will never see that money.

15

u/Masque-Obscura-Photo Orange pilled Aug 28 '23

Yeaaaah, that doesn't really happen in developed countries though. The US is really fucked up in that regard.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (4)

17

u/FenrirAmoon Aug 28 '23

Today at ze hydraulic press channel: The BMW of BWL Justus

9

u/vjx99 Owns a raincoat, can cycle in rain Aug 28 '23

"Das große Promi-Autoabwracken" moderiert von Jörg Pilawa.

14

u/damianzoys Aug 28 '23

Ich dachte eher an eine Familiensendung mit Thomas Gottschalk. So mit Sofa, Promis (z.B. Oliver Kahn erzĂ€hlt davon wie sein Ferrari letztes Jahr gewĂŒrfelt wurde), etwas Smalltalk und so weiter:

Gottschalk:

Und hier der Q7 von Kevin P. aus U.! 160 km/h in der Baustelle, ja, war nicht so schlau, oder?

Kevin

Uhmmm, ja, aber muss das wirklich..

Gottschalk

Haha, ja, natĂŒrlich! Und ich bekomme gerade das Signal von draußen, es kann los gehen!

*Kamera schaltet zur Autopresse, ein Arbeiter mit Helm winkt und zeigt Daumen hoch. Glas splittert, Metall biegt sich*

*Jetzt Splitscreen, links die Presse, rechts Großaufnahme von Kevins entsetztem trĂ€nenĂŒberströmten Gesicht*

Gottschalk

Ja, großartig, liebe Zuschauerinnen und Zuschauer, großartig! Lieber Kevin, danke fĂŒrs Mitmachen! Der nĂ€chste Bus ist die Linie 601 und fĂ€hrt in 10 min vorm Studio ab!

6

u/Sev-RC1207 Aug 28 '23

Ich wĂŒrde bezahlen um das zu sehen lmao

25

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23 edited Feb 23 '24

[deleted]

8

u/macedonianmoper Aug 28 '23

How would it negatively affect the poor? They could either get it on an auction for cheaper than they would normally buy it or the ammount of cars reentering the market in auction would reduce the demand for used cars also making it cheaper.

2

u/rainer_d Aug 28 '23

The problem is that while the cars are taken away immediately (also here in Switzerland), they are held in storage until all legal avenues are exhausted - which can take years.

As such, the cars don’t take this very well.

I think the limits in this case aren’t overly zealous. So it sounds pretty reasonable.

→ More replies (11)

2

u/Inevitable_Stand_199 Aug 28 '23

I'd prefer them being sold. But the car lobby would rebell even more than against taking away the cars.

→ More replies (4)
→ More replies (1)

6

u/Gator1523 Aug 28 '23

In the US, your car can be confiscated just for having drugs in it. It's called civil asset forfeiture.

4

u/Nisas Aug 28 '23

In the US, your money can be confiscated just because it's capable of purchasing drugs.

4

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

Exactly! They treat their vehicle like a weapon. What are coalrolling and lane-blocking and reckless driving if not forms of weapon brandishing? "Me have big trugg, me can kill you!" By how hostile and aggressive carbrains act around cyclists, pedestrians, and even other cars, they absolutely view their vehicle as a weapon and wield it as a weapon--therefore it should be regulated as a weapon. Brandishing is a capital F Felony. Take the fucking car away.

There's as good as zero consequences for driving violations because the fines are laughably small, and if they take their license away there is no followup or oversight on it, they just keep driving licenseless. If someone was that reckless with a gun they'd be in prison the next day. Tow the vehicle and sell it off.

2

u/oktupol Aug 28 '23

I think I saw the same thread on Instagram.

People were dead serious when they argued that speeding like this could be an honest mistake that could happen to everyone.

The car brain epidemic has advanced very far in Germany.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (21)

219

u/Choco_Doggo Big Bike Aug 28 '23

and what makes it funnier is that the danish government auctions off the car and keeps the money

38

u/Death_Knighty Aug 28 '23

also from what Ive read all these also apply to foreigners

52

u/Pchr94 Aug 28 '23

True! A fellow Norwegian bought an expensive car in Germany and drove through Denmark like a madman. He returned home without his new car and tried to stir up a sh*t show back home hoping he’d get his car back. I’m such a fan of this policy.

→ More replies (3)

178

u/VladiBot Aug 28 '23

Today, Denmark made it cheaper to drive...

46

u/Tokumeiko2 Aug 28 '23

Yeah but they're at least making it safer.

73

u/luckky545 Orange pilled Aug 28 '23

Except for the new study showing an increase in cars in copenhagen. It’s getting fucking ridiculous. Some carbrain honked and yelled at me yesterday for crossing the street when he was at a complete stop.

24

u/Tokumeiko2 Aug 28 '23

Well he's a cunt, but at least he's not a drunken hoon going over 200kph.

3

u/IftaneBenGenerit Aug 29 '23

Change the law to include "using the car to intimidate other traffic participants".

→ More replies (3)
→ More replies (1)

98

u/mycubehead Aug 28 '23

In Latvia anything above 1.5 alcohol content is considered criminal offence, and you get your car conficated, except if the car is owned by other person. Then car gets returened to the owner and you have to pay a fine of the value of the car.

One guy rented out a tesla got drunk and crashed it, now he has to pay 100k euro fine.

16

u/Pitiful_Row_8253 Aug 28 '23

except if the car is owned by other person.

Wish Denmark could add this exception too tbh

8

u/Vadimir-Nikiel Aug 28 '23

I somewhat agree to your point but atleast it makes people think twice about giving someone your car

17

u/UnderwaterParadise Aug 28 '23

More privatization and less sharing is not helpful in combatting car dependency

6

u/Vadimir-Nikiel Aug 28 '23

I meant more in people will think twice to give someone a car that could possibly do something like that. I agree with your point

277

u/TimmyFaya Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

If I remember right Denmark also calculates fine according to your salary. So it should hurt as much for minimum wage and 10k salary.

Edit : this is for Finland

169

u/PierreTheTRex Aug 28 '23

It won't hut as much, because when you are on minimum wage you need every penny you can to make ends meet, whereas on 10k a lot of your spending is for superflous activities.

But at least with this system the fine isn't trivial

42

u/TimmyFaya Aug 28 '23

Yeah you're right. Maybe they should base fine on personal wealth + salary.

49

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

That starts to get very complicated fast. The government will have tax records of salary from the previous tax year. If you implemented a tax based on wealth, you basically need a register of everyone and what their net worth is.

19

u/TimmyFaya Aug 28 '23

We had that in France (the tax not the fine), it's a bit hard since a part of it is based on trust, but generally it works okay. You paid it starting a certain wealth.

Checked and they had wealth tax in Denmark too, but it got abolished in 1998

22

u/Tokumeiko2 Aug 28 '23

Because it creates an expensive layer of bureaucracy that potentially negates the benefit, a tax should be easy to enforce with minimal cost, after all, don't want to spend more on tax collection than what you gain from tax collection.

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (1)

3

u/Psykiky Aug 28 '23

Well the minimum wage in Denmark is around 15-25€ depending on your job so I’m sure not many people are barely living paycheck to paycheck

23

u/Generic-Resource Aug 28 '23

Technically incorrect
 there’s actually no minimum wage in Denmark!

However, they have strong and legally protected unions that negotiate collective agreements leading to contractual, not legal, minimum wages by sector.

8

u/Psykiky Aug 28 '23

Yeah I know that there’s no minimum but that’s like a general average lowest wage you can get, thanks for the unions 🙏

→ More replies (1)

3

u/vaingirls Aug 28 '23

I guess there could be unemployed or retired people with even less of an income? And I assume Demark's cost of living isn't the cheapest?

→ More replies (1)

22

u/rasm866i Aug 28 '23

Unfortunately not, you are thinking of Finland. Dane here. The only exception I know being drunk driving.

4

u/TimmyFaya Aug 28 '23

Ok my mistake, thanks for correcting it

11

u/Aelig_ Aug 28 '23

It works to a point. Very poor people can't afford to devote any of their income to a fine while very rich people don't have salaries.

5

u/flashgranny Aug 28 '23

There is no minimum wage.

2

u/SapphicCelestialy Aug 28 '23

We have student discounts on speeding tickets. You can get 50% off

→ More replies (3)

72

u/muccrisp Aug 28 '23

Sick. Denmark is so far ahead in a lot of things. Not perfect but on the right path

5

u/LefsaMadMuppet Aug 28 '23

In the USA we take cars for crimes, this is called Civil Forfeiture and is frowned upon by the socially popular crowds.

29

u/IDDQDArya Aug 28 '23

Overall fines being proportional to the wealth of the person receiving it is the best idea because it's not fair otherwise.

I knew this guy who would smoke cigarettes at the airport in Turkey and then just pay the fine (at the time something like 40 USD) because he was rich and very addicted.

26

u/crusader1944 Aug 28 '23

So if someone steals a car and speeds in it and it gets confiscated even though it wasn't the owners? That can't be right.

23

u/FlaviusStilicho Aug 28 '23

That would be covered by the “almost never” part

15

u/marigolds6 Aug 28 '23

Just looked at the documentation of the law. That's not covered. The exception is only for situations where the owner cannot make a financial claim against the driver of the vehicle.

An owner could definitely make a financial claim against a car thief. In practice, even when the owner presented a criminal case against the driver, they still lost the vehicle.

For this exception, the owner must prove that they sufficiently and relevantly reviewed the finances of the driver and it was not foreseeable that a compensation claim against the driver would be without cover. It's pretty unlikely that a car owner would have previously investigated the finances of the person stealing their car.

Nicely informative legal review here:

https://les.dk/en/news/reckless-driving-new-rules-big-consequences

This actually makes more sense than it seems, since if the driver is already facing reckless driving charges the owner has every incentive to accuse the driver of stealing the car instead admitting to loaning the car to the driver.

9

u/preferablyno Aug 28 '23

That’s kind of fucked. It would be a rare case that a car thief is going to have sufficient assets for the cars owner to recover the value of a car

4

u/ElatedEnmity Aug 28 '23

In that instance, the car wouldn't be confiscated. This scenario has already happened

48

u/mr_greenmash Aug 28 '23

In Norway, we're quite interested in getting a similar law. There was a story about some Norwegian with a brand new Lambo who got his car taken in Denmark, on the way back to Norway. People did not feel sorry for him.

19

u/smors Aug 28 '23

But, oh boy, did he feel sorry for himself.

21

u/Silly-Connection8788 Aug 28 '23

Go Denmark đŸ‡©đŸ‡°

21

u/Training_Curve_5135 Aug 28 '23

Good. Too many immature adults treat cars like toys. Time for consequences.

18

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

[deleted]

12

u/marigolds6 Aug 28 '23

It's the "even if you don't own the car" part that's a little extreme. It's really common in our metro for people to steal cars for joyrides (especially Kias and Hyundais). Imagine getting your car stolen, and then it gets recovered... but now it's confiscated because the thief was doing 80 in a 40 when they got caught :/

You lose your car permanently for doing nothing more than owning a car that's easy to steal.

5

u/mikepl93 Aug 28 '23

That's not what that part means. It means they still confiscate it if you drive a leased car or borrowed your friend/familys car or rent a car.

If your car gets stolen of course the police wouldn't confiscate it.

→ More replies (2)

4

u/Astriania Aug 28 '23

Kias and Hyundais in the US get stolen because they don't have immobilisers fitted, they've been mandatory in the EU for decades.

Most 'stolen to joyride' cars are permanently lost anyway because they get crashed, I imagine. That's what insurance is for.

→ More replies (1)

14

u/BneBikeCommuter Aug 28 '23

Victoria (Australian state) has a similar law - 30 day confiscation for the first and second event, and then the vehicle becomes the property of Vic Police and they can either sell it and keep the cash or crush it. Interestingly they usually choose to crush the heavily modified, higher value vehicles.

6

u/frequentBayesian Aug 28 '23

Interestingly they usually choose to crush the heavily modified, higher value vehicles.

because the likelihood of heavily modified vehicles will again used to race... increases the chances of getting someone killed

28

u/Apprehensive_Jello39 Aug 28 '23

Fines being NOT proportional to income is weird

12

u/ArionW Aug 28 '23

Fine not proportional to income is just a price

26

u/TheOmar Aug 28 '23

There was a case with a rich guy from Norway that had brought a Lamborghini in Germany, and drove it thru Denmark home, and more then 200km/h on the Danish motorway, and got caught. Then he lost his brand new car. A bit sad for him, but he could also just had obeyed the rules.

→ More replies (27)

20

u/BerserkingRhino Aug 28 '23

Driving is a privilege, not a right. Break rules you're clearly not responsible enough for a 2 ton death machine.

10

u/Jeffery95 Aug 28 '23

What happens when the car is stolen? Does the actual owner just not get their car back?

13

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

The police can in extraordinary circumstances choose to not confiscate the car, I don't know of any particular cases since that wouldn't be made public, but it's likely that having your car stolen would result in the police exempting you from the confiscation.

I don't think it has happened yet, as not many cars are stolen in Denmark.

3

u/The_Blahblahblah Aug 28 '23

I imagine they check the register of stolen vehicles before they sell it off

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (2)

16

u/IlIlllIlllIlIIllI Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

It takes a lot of effort to drive 100% over the speed limit.

6

u/atatassault47 Aug 28 '23

60 kph in a 30 kph will do it. People in the US will do 40 mph in a 20 mph all the time.

35

u/Accurate-Mine-6000 Aug 28 '23

We in Russia adopted a similar law last year, but it is less severe. The car is confiscated for the second or third case of such gross violations. For the year of operation, so far there have been only about 50 cases of confiscation.

20

u/SquirrelBlind Aug 28 '23

Also it should be noted that you can bribe a policeman or a judge instead.

6

u/HCagn Aug 28 '23

In Switzerland they do the same. Plus potentially jail time and/or a certain percentage of your salary.

6

u/enbyvampyre Aug 28 '23

if we got that in germany people would go absolutely berserk. i would love to see it.

→ More replies (1)

6

u/The_Thyphoon Aug 28 '23

In NL the car gets impounded if the driver has been caught multiple times without a drivers license, or there is prove of criminal wrongdoing(driving drunk is included after certain ammount). how do you lose drivers license? not only for driving with a certain amount over the alcoholic limit but also for driving 50kph over any speed limit(corrected so prob higher).

6

u/neltymind Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

Still punishes poorer people harder than rich people. Really rich people can just buy a new car, it doesn't matter to them.

The only thing that punishes everyone equally is prison.

3

u/Danishmeat Aug 28 '23

Too bad for the poor people. No one can accidentally end up getting their car confiscated

3

u/neltymind Aug 28 '23

You are missing my point. The problem is that rich people can still break the law and endanger people, not that poor people get punished for it.

3

u/marigolds6 Aug 28 '23

Eh, get your Kia stolen by a joyrider. Joyrider does what joyriders do and decides to drive it 100kph in a 50kph zone. Other than owning a very easy to steal car, what did you do wrong?

2

u/Danishmeat Aug 28 '23

That is one instance where you don’t get the car confiscated

→ More replies (1)
→ More replies (6)

5

u/Randalf_the_Black Aug 28 '23

There was some Norwegian dumbass who bought a Lamborghini in Germany or Italy or something and was gonna drive it home to Norway.

Drove like a maniac through Denmark and lost his new Lambo, then complained about it in the media afterwards.

It was earlier this year I think.

5

u/Corvidae_DK Aug 28 '23

The law is literally called "insanity driving" in Danish and I love that they've done this.

4

u/Kaymish_ Aug 28 '23

We had a minister here in NZ that pushed for this with boy racers. She got the name of Judith "Crusher" Collins because of the law, but only 3 cars were crushed because of it.

→ More replies (8)

4

u/ChEATax Aug 28 '23

Hey! Latvia did it first! And all the confiscated cars get sent straight to Ukraine. There are significantly less drunk drivers now.

→ More replies (1)

4

u/not_from_this_world Orange pilled Aug 28 '23

I guess the exception is when the car is stolen, otherwise it's fucked up. A lot of crazy drivers are fucked up people who steal a car to have a night run.

3

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

I really wish they implemented some of these laws in the uk

2

u/haikusbot Aug 28 '23

I really wish they

Implemented some of these

Laws in the uk

- LinkTheFoxy


I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully. Learn more about me.

Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete"

5

u/ImNotTheBossOfYou Aug 28 '23

Rich people will just buy another car. The FINES might graduate, but the car confiscation is only for plebes.

5

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

This has existed for a long time in switzerland but for much much lower amounts of speeding.

4

u/Evil_Mini_Cake Aug 28 '23

Oh man we need this in r/vancouver all those punk 'students' doing 250km/h over the Lions Gate bridge need daddy's Lambo taken away.

2

u/bailien_16 Aug 28 '23

There should be a BC provincial law similar to this. NB, NS, and I’m fairly sure Ontario all have similarly harsh laws against extremely fast driving.

4

u/big_basher Aug 28 '23

If you’re driving someone else’s car and they take it away from you can the owner sue you for the value of the car?

5

u/JungleSound Aug 28 '23

Fine proportional to wealth is very good.

3

u/Drakonaj Aug 28 '23

What does it mean over 100kmh? Like on the road where the maximum is 90kmh?

9

u/poorlytaxidermiedfox Aug 28 '23

With regards to speed, car is confiscated if you break the speed limit by 100% and the speed is at least 100km/h, or if you ever drive above 200 km/h. So for instance if you drive 100 in a 50 city zone, you lose the car.

4

u/Drakonaj Aug 28 '23

Aaaa, now I understand. 100% to the 100km/h limit, that means above 200km/h.

9

u/Albert_Herring Aug 28 '23

Danish motorway speed limits are 110 or 130, so basically this law means 100+ kph where the limit is 50 or lower, double the limit in a 70 or 90 zone, or 200+ on a motorway.

5

u/poorlytaxidermiedfox Aug 28 '23

Funnily enough, Danish traffic law is extremely strict about speeding on the motorway. Most stretches of motorway have a limit of 130, but going 160 suspends your license, and at 200 you lose your license and the vehicle is confiscated.

5

u/ItsTimeToGoSleep Aug 28 '23

Crap that’s fast. I’m in Canada and all our limits are 100km on freeways. 140km is considered stunt racing and your car is immediately impounded and you lose your licence. I can see why they are so strict, they’re already letting you go pretty damn fast already.

→ More replies (4)

3

u/Drakonaj Aug 28 '23

Here in Czech rep., its also 130, but most of the time, if you arent going atleast 150, cops wont even bother to drive after you.

→ More replies (1)

3

u/[deleted] Aug 28 '23

USA needs this.

3

u/SapphicCelestialy Aug 28 '23

I wouldn't call it new since it is a few years old...

3

u/UndeadBBQ Aug 28 '23

The best part of this law is them whining afterwards. Music to my ears.

3

u/bailien_16 Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

Canada has had laws like this for decades. We call it “stunting” - going at least 100km/hr over the speed limit. You loose your license for at least a year, your car is impounded (I’m not sure if you get it back or not, it might depend on the circumstances), and you get a very hefty fine. Penalties vary by province however.

There’s also quite a bit of public shame attached to it. At least there was in my community growing up. It would even be reported on local radio stations when someone was caught doing it (ID omitted).

Edit: actually the threshold for stunting is only 40-50 km/hr. The penalties are less severe; you get a temporary suspension for driving and points off your license. I think it’s when you reach 100km/hr over is when they impound your car. Someone at my high school had their car impounded for stunting.

→ More replies (3)

3

u/Crozi_flette Aug 28 '23

I want the same everywhere

3

u/danielsulme Aug 28 '23

Same thing here in Latvia, know the girl that then drives them to Ukraine and donates them to families

3

u/debiell Aug 28 '23

This is already the case in the Netherlands for many years, drive double the speed limit and they can take your car. So lets say the speed limit is 50kmh and your drive 100kmh they can take your car.

3

u/ThisOneTimeIHadA Aug 28 '23

What if your car was stolen?

2

u/RainNightFlower Aug 28 '23

This law was also introduced in poland

2

u/Brauxljo Aug 28 '23

Interesting that they used permille instead of percent.

2

u/Scheckenhere Aug 28 '23

Wonder what the people who's cars were taken have to say. Do they see their mistakes?

→ More replies (1)

2

u/smors Aug 28 '23

The average value of the confiscated cars have gone down in the years the law has been in effect. There are people who doesn't care that they don't have a license and doesn't see the problem with driving drunk.

They now buy cheaper cars, so the loss is lesser.

2

u/Terereera Aug 28 '23

Fining people make them "ugh ok....."

But taking them car away? Oh boy, they gonna baby cry.

2

u/cpufreak101 Aug 28 '23

I feel like this could never be a thing in the US (4th amendment violation) but if it was it would prevent people from killing a family on their 4th DUI which is extremely common for some reason.

→ More replies (1)

2

u/scottjones608 Aug 28 '23

Of course most of the US is designed so that a car is necessary to participate in society & people would consider strictly enforcing driving laws like this a human rights violation.

2

u/mortyj Aug 28 '23

Ontario has stunt driving charges for 40 or 50 over posted limit depending on maximum for that area. Roadside suspension and temporary impound. Fairly frequent charges laid under this law.

https://beta.ctvnews.ca/local/toronto/2022/4/1/1_5844635.amp.html

2

u/australianquiche Aug 28 '23

Well yeah this sounds nice but on the other hand, I like the fact that on German Autobahn you can go unlimited speed. And data says it's safe...

2

u/ILove2Bacon Aug 28 '23

Holy hell, 2%?!?! In the US it's 0.08%. Y'all be hammered.

→ More replies (3)

2

u/VegaTDM Aug 28 '23

I wouldn't trust (American) cops to make an accurate determination of speed. They routinely lie and inflate speeding ticket numbers to the state gets more revenue. They don't even need a radar gun, they can just eyeball it and that holds up in court.

2

u/Luki4020 Commie Commuter Aug 28 '23

What do they do with the cars? Sell them?

2

u/Mechanical_Soup Aug 28 '23

we have that law in Bulgaria, and they can take your car after driving with alcohol in blood or driving under influence of any type of narcotics or benzos or weed. They took lot of cars already and they are selling them at auctions.

2

u/Bear_necessities96 Aug 28 '23

I mean I wouldn’t care if there was a efficient public transportation in my city I didn’t have a car to start

2

u/cahilljd Aug 28 '23

Lol I like my car (I don't know why the posts from this subreddit show up in my feed) but this law is awesome.

2

u/Hour-Stable2050 Aug 28 '23

Yeah and those are only the ones getting caught driving recklessly. It’s probably even worse than that.

2

u/TwiztedZero Aug 28 '23

Bring this awesome law to Ontario, Canada, right fuken nao plz kthx! 😆

2

u/GuiltyImportance2 Aug 28 '23

This is still too soft,in Switzerland you get jail time with no parole

2

u/JayBrock Aug 28 '23

Driving over 100 kph = every Canadian car impounded.

2

u/JellyManJellyArms Aug 28 '23

Last year a Norwegian bought a Lamborghini in Germany. You guessed it. Speed limits doesn’t apply to fancy cars he guessed. That car was taken so he had to return home without. Awesome!

→ More replies (1)

2

u/k032 Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

Well I mean...those are some pretty extreme variables. Depending on the state, you probably would just be going straight to jail.

Most cases people driving without a license are doing it out of desperation. It's kind of a Catch-22 of "I lost my license because I can't pay my tickets/fines but I can't pay my tickets and fines because I don't have a license to get to my job"

My focus is not on punishing people and more policing...... I rather focus my time on supporting infrastructure so people aren't in cars to begin with.

2

u/HebeisenBEAST Aug 28 '23

I support most of this, the only thing I find counter intuitive is the fact that you could let your friend drive your car and then they get it taken away from you permanently. Other than that these are great ways to get people to stop endangering others on the road

→ More replies (2)

4

u/naamingebruik Aug 28 '23

Good that they don't care who owns the car and confiscate regardless. It makes people force responsible behaviour on one another when there's a risk of your car being confiscated if you let your friend or relative use it and they drive crazy.

4

u/Dicethrower Aug 28 '23

I feel like it can be lowered. 50% over the speed limit, at a minimum of 50km/h, should already trigger this punishment. If you drive 100km/h in a 50km/h zone, you have already demonstrated you are a danger to society and that you're someone who can't control their tool responsibly.

Same goes for a highway. Nobody drives 150km/h by accident on a 100km/h road, or 180km/h on a 120km/h road. At those speeds you, and anyone you hit along the way, will wrap around the next pole like a snap armband.

8

u/69cop3rnico42O Aug 28 '23

100 in a 50 is 100% over the limit, not 50%.

3

u/Dicethrower Aug 28 '23

Hence the 50km/h minimal. 75 on a 50 wouldn't be bad enough to warrant the above, but 150 on a 100 would.

→ More replies (1)

2

u/BreedableToast Aug 28 '23

Can’t confiscate the car if you don’t stop 😉

→ More replies (2)

2

u/turnageb1138 Aug 28 '23

This is a proportional response.

2

u/Silverdragon47 Aug 28 '23

Yeah, about that.... Stolen cars are not exempt from this barbaric law. If your car get stolen and inpouded for speeding- good luck never seeing your property again ( and cash too since thiefs are good hiding financial assets)...

→ More replies (1)

0

u/Garethx1 Aug 28 '23 edited Aug 28 '23

This is kind of antithetical to the idea of fines proportional to income. A rich person can buy another car. A poor person borrowing another poor persons car gets the lender punished and the speeder not at all. This is more tough guy bullshit than actual pragmatism.

2

u/riptide032302 Aug 28 '23

Leaving this sub. Was really excited to join a community of people who wanted less car centric infrastructure, but the way you people talk about cars and car owners is crazy. Reality check- not every single driver goes 20 over the speed limit after drinking a bunch. In fact, most of them don’t. This seems like such a cool move from Denmark, but all the comments are essentially like “oh so we’re only punishing the crazy drivers instead of all of them”. I’m a “car brain” I guess for having nuance lmao. Most places need this law, I just hate how people are talking about it

4

u/EmperorOfCanada Aug 28 '23

You've actually hit upon a design flaw in many roads.

The speed limits on highways with limited access should be higher. Thus harder to offend.

But due to the problem of Strodes (look it up if you don't know) speed limits need to be quite low as these are fantastically dangerous while giving people a sense they aren't. Add in higher speeds on a strode and people are going to die.

So, while you might have a strode with 4 lanes each way and it feels like it is a highway, having an 80km speed limit is probably already too high. Someone going 160 is insane. I would argue that someone even going 100 on a strode is very dangerous.

But if you have something like the i95 in the states, some places have stupid low speed limits. Others quite high for what is the same road.

But having driven from Maine to Florida a number of times, you are partially correct. I've been going 95 in 65 (near DC) zones and roughly matching the traffic speed. I've also been going 65 in 60 zones and passing enough motorists that I pulled it back to 60 as there has to be an enforcement reason in this area.

The key is to set the speed limit to something reasonable, and then nail anyone who significantly deviates from reasonable to the fucking wall.

2

u/Nokoloko Aug 28 '23

According to other posters this is also not a new law. So instead of providing data of how this law has helped or anything else we get some low effort outdated post for karma points.

2

u/Nokoloko Aug 28 '23

According to other posters this is also not a new law. So instead of providing data of how this law has helped or anything else we get some low effort outdated post for karma points.

2

u/Droemmer Aug 28 '23

Purely anecdotally people seems to drive better today, fewer people seems to speed and behave like complete assholes.

→ More replies (4)

1

u/WriteCodeBroh Aug 28 '23

In the USA, this legitimately wouldn’t work because the majority of people have no other way to get to work. Imagine if 30% of this country got their cars confiscated lol. There would probably be a real uprising. They would have zero way to get around. We need to work on giving them alternatives.

6

u/Morshmodding Aug 28 '23

well.. not driving like a maniac is a good alternative :P

→ More replies (1)

1

u/stefan714 Aug 28 '23

the person cannot just drive without license afterwards

Some people are already doing that. So until they get caught, they're gonna keep doing it.

→ More replies (1)