Since January 1, the Danish Road Traffic Authority has issued 8,892 fines of 4,500 kroner each to trucks that have not paid the new kilometer-based road tax. This is shown by an access to documents obtained by FemernBusiness.
The tax applies to trucks over 12 tons that drive on a total of 10,900 kilometers of state and municipal roads. Payment is made via a box in the truck or by purchasing a digital road tax ticket. License plate scanners register trucks that have not paid, and the fine is 4,500 kroner each time. And the plan is for that fine to double from July 1. The government proposes this in a bill that is currently being considered in the Folketing.
Something is completely wrong
Director Peter Flensted Rasmussen from Sax-Trans in Sakskøbing is frustrated with the situation. His company has received six fines, which have been paid, but objections have been made against all of them.
- 9,000 fines in such a short time clearly show that something is completely wrong here. One needs to look inward. There simply aren't that many fraudsters, he says.
Sax-Trans has 55 trucks over 12 tons, all equipped with a box that monitors when payment is due. The system is supposed to automatically deduct the road toll, but if the box or app shows a red warning, the haulier must purchase a road toll ticket themselves.
- The system is fundamentally really good and integrates well with other things in the truck. But there are obviously errors, and it's incredible that it's not under control, says Peter Flensted Rasmussen.
DI: No difference between good and bad faith
At DI, they have received inquiries about the many fines. Inquiries from member companies that have done everything they could to do it right, but still received fines.
- The problem lies in the way the law is structured. There is no distinction between good and bad faith. The fine is the same whether you tried to cheat or did everything right, and that's not fair, says Rune Noack, Head of Transport Policy at DI.
DI therefore suggests that hauliers should be allowed to pay the road tax retroactively when there has been a failure with the box, and the haulier is therefore in good faith. Then they should receive a notification that there has been a failure. And not a fine.
- It's easy to document and correct the error in that way. And then we avoid the unfair fines, says Rune Noack.
Sund & Bælt: The system works
Sund & Bælt is responsible for the operation and implementation of the system and maintains that it works as intended. At the same time, it has previously been announced that fines issued between January 1st and 8th will be annulled due to technical startup issues.
Ole Lykke Christensen, director of Tolling at Sund & Bælt, however, rejects the criticism and insists that the system is functioning as it should.
- It is clear that no one thinks it's fun to get a fine, but the system is running correctly, and the control and issuance of fines are done according to the rules, he says.
He emphasizes that the vast majority of trucks pay the road toll correctly. Less than two percent of the controlled passages result in a fine, and on average, one fine is issued per 16,000 kilometers driven on the toll road network.
- We are in ongoing dialogue with the industry to find solutions to the startup difficulties experienced by hauliers, he says.
Hauliers can object to fines, and if they can document that the error is due to technical problems or misunderstandings in the system, the fine will be annulled, Sund & Bælt informs.
