Since 1 January, nearly 18,000 fines have been sent out to hauliers who, according to the authorities, have not paid the new kilometre-based road tax. According to the Danish Road Traffic Authority, 17,848 fines had been issued as of 14 March. The tax applies to lorries over 12 tonnes and is charged based on environmental class and kilometres driven.
At the same time, 4,982 objections have been submitted, but only 687 of them have been processed. In 180 cases, hauliers have been successful.
Technical errors trigger fines
Several hauliers, including Sax-Trans in Sakskøbing, have received fines even though they believe they have followed the rules. A box in the lorry must register the journey and automatically triggers a fine if the system is not active. Director Peter Flensted Rasmussen says that the box has malfunctioned in several cases, resulting in fines of 4,500 kroner. These fines have been appealed, but they have now been informed that the waiting time is up to three months to have their objection processed.
- It cannot be right that we have to wait three months for a decision while fines are still being sent out in large numbers, he says.
He has therefore suggested that the issuing of fines be temporarily suspended until the authorities can keep up with case processing.
The demand for a pause in the issuance of fines is supported politically. The Danish Democrats' transport spokesperson Kenneth Fredslund believes it is unreasonable to continue sending out fines while thousands of complaints pile up.
- The issuance of fines should be suspended. It is no good to keep sending out fines when complaints cannot be processed within a reasonable time, he says.
Minister: The system works
Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen from Venstre acknowledges that there have been errors, but he rejects in a written response the request to pause the system.
- There is no system that is error-free, but fundamentally, the system works. There have been a number of cases where small errors have been made in entering the number plate, for example, an extra space. That is an obvious error, and I have said that we should show leniency here at the start. Errors that may be due to the system are also corrected and fines annulled. But the system works, so there is no reason to pause anything, he says.
He emphasises that the goal is to ensure fair competition and correct payment.
- It should be possible to object, and then we use the administrative resources needed to handle the cases - one must pay what one should - not less, but also not more. And if one has cheated, it should of course have a consequence, and therefore the fine should reflect that, so everyone - both Danish and foreign drivers - pays their share, says Thomas Danielsen.
Industry: The rules are too rigid
Organisations such as ITD and DI have criticised that the system does not distinguish between good and bad faith. Even companies that try to follow the rules are fined if the technology fails.
Today, the fine is 4,500 kroner, but the government is proposing a doubling to 9,000 kroner from 1 July. The bill is now under consideration in the Folketing.
