The Government Council for National Road Safety supported a change of penalty-point system

22/3/2021Press releases

The Government Council for National Road Safety supported a change of penalty-point system and an increase of sanctions for the most serious road offences in a government amendment to Road Traffic Act. The Council also gave its consent on an amendment to Act on Police and Customs, which should allow the police to withhold a vehicle’s licence plate if the driver had an unpaid fine and refused to pay the debt.

“Both draft amendments are an important tool to increase law enforcement and effectivity of sanctions for dangerous drivers. However, there is a serious risk that the amendment to Road Traffic Act, which inter alia introduces further driving bans for serious offences and a clearer penalty-point system, will be postponed and the legislation process will not be finished by the end of this electoral mandate”, said Mr Tomáš Neřold, head of National Road Safety Unit at the Ministry.

The government submitted both amendments to the Chamber of Deputies in August/September 2020. The change of penalty-point system has not been discussed yet (amendment to Road Traffic Act, Document No. 987/0, part 1/10). The amendment to Act on Police and Customs is in the second reading (Document No. 983/0, part 1/6).

The Ministry of Transport also considers enforcing a legislative priority for changes in the Road Traffic Act by the end of the current electoral mandate. The change of penalty-point system and sanctions for violating road traffic rules should be effective from 2022. The proposal lowers number of penalty categories to three and increases sanctions for intentional violation of rules and endangering other road users. On the other hand, the amendment lowers sanctions for a slight speeding, wrong parking or forgetting a driving licence. The police also wants to enforce a clearly defined safe distance between vehicles.

The updated penalty-point system is a result of a 4-year expert discussion, which was open also to public. The penalty-point system, amount of penalties and length of driving bans have not been changed in the Czech Republic for more than 14 years; since the introduction of the penalty-point system in 2006. The amendment successfully passed inter-ministerial comment procedure as well as assessment by the Government Legislative Council.

Around 500 people die on Czech roads each year, economical losses from traffic collisions amount to CZK 80 billion per year. The new government National Road Safety Strategy aims to decrease number of death toll to half within 10 years. The Member States of the EU and the UN share the same goal.

“An effective supervision and law enforcement are one of the five priorities set in the new National Road Safety Strategy. We also need to improve safety of roads (by elimination of accident-prone areas) and behaviour of young drivers in emergencies. But as we can see in other EU Member States, which have recently increased sanctions for dangerous offences, increase of road safety goes hand in hand with clearer and tougher sanctions for drivers who put others in danger”, added Mr Neřold.

The Government Council for National Road Safety is a permanent advisory body of the government. Among its members are ministries responsible for increasing road safety, representatives of regions and cities, Transport Research Centre, Czech Insurers’ Bureau or Automotive Industry Association.

More information about the Government Council for National Road Safety are available here (in Czech language only).