Fines: Caution for speeding Swiss
ADJUSTMENT Swiss people who have been caught speeding or parking the wrong way in Germany have often got off scot-free up to now. A new law is set to change this - and also has implications for German traffic offenders.
As the Südkurier reports, Swiss traffic offenders in Germany could be asked to pay more consistently in the future. At least, that is what the law implementing the new police treaty between Germany and Switzerland envisages. Conversely, however, this also means that violations by Germans in Switzerland could also be punished more easily.
From illegal parking to racing
Until now, penalties for Swiss nationals following offenses in Germany were often not enforced because the effort would have been too great for the German authorities. In the future, the Federal Office of Justice is now to enforce cross-border fines in order to relieve the police and fine authorities. According to the federal government's draft law, it should not matter whether the offenses are criminal or administrative offenses. Parking offences would therefore be covered in exactly the same way as illegal street racing.
Cross-border persecution
It was already the case that a Swiss national who broke the rules abroad could be punished under Swiss law if the offense was reported in Switzerland. For the police, however, the cross-border prosecution of traffic offenses was too costly. Conversely, Swiss authorities have also lacked the means to collect fines from drivers from Germany in many cases.
In its draft legislation, the federal government now assumes 5000 incoming and 6000 outgoing enforcement requests in the traffic sector each year - i.e. 6000 offenses committed by Swiss road users who are to be prosecuted. The new police treaty is to come into force on January 1, 2024, by which time this draft should also have passed through the parliamentary procedure.
Source: Südkurier
