A new bill that has already been approved by the Transport Select Committee will oblige magistrates to confiscate the vehicles of motorists that drive on the roads without a valid driving licence. Once it becomes law the new bill that was tabled by the Flemish nationalist federal MP Wouter Raskin will see anyone that is caught driving without a licence have their vehicle taken off them.
People who drive without a licence will have their vehicle confiscated as a matter of course
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Mr Raskin says that we are “We are hitting offenders where it hurts. Drivers that take to the road despite being banned from driving are no exception here”.
A study carried out in 2019 by the road safety institute Vias showed that motorists that take to the roads despite being banned from driving are the motorists that are most likely to reoffend and are also overrepresented in the accident figures.
Once the new bill becomes law a magistrate will have to give a valid reason (for example a medical emergency) if a person caught driving without a licence’s vehicle is not confiscated.
Deal with "cowboys"
Mr Raskin says that the aim is to target “the cowboys” on our roads and to spare others from unreasonably harsh penalties. “The bill makes it clear that we are no longer prepared to accept anti-social behaviour that endangers the safety of others. Imagine if it were your child that was run over by someone with a driving ban”.
If someone is caught driving without a valid licence in a car that belongs to another person the vehicle will not be confiscated. While Mr Raskin “realises that his bill is not a miracle solution", "what law is?”.
"It will in any case enable us to take stricter action than is currently the case. Moreover, it sends out a signal to traffic offenders that their toy can be taken from them."