You have probably heard the recent news about our local government mulling the idea to install speed limiters in every car registered in Malaysia to limit speed a vehicles’ speed to 110km/h. While our speeding fines would amount to a maximum RM300, you should be grateful you don’t live in Nordic countries like Finland because speeding tickets there are only partly based on the actual speed violation, and the monetary sum is determined by the violator’s income!
So when a Finnish millionaire Reima Kuisla was caught by the police doing 103 km/h in a 80 km/h zone, authorities looked at his 2013 tax return and saw that he made 6.5 million euros, as a result he ended up with a huge €54,024 (about RM215,824) fine!
In a Facebook post, Reima Kuisla said, “Finland is impossible to live in for certain kinds of people who have high incomes and wealth. I’m considering leaving the country.”
You will be surprised to hear this isn’t actually the most expensive speeding ticket compared to others given in the Nordic countries, which now tie fines to income or the value of the violators’ car. In 2010, a Ferrari driver in Switzerland with a history of violations and a net worth of more than $20 million (about RM74 million) got a ticket for $290,000 (about RM1,069,926) . In Germany, fines for speeding tickets can reach as high as $16 million! (about RM58 million)!
This wealth-based tickets are a good way to deter the rich—who can easily pay fines—from breaking the law. But clearly, governments also like the revenue. Either way, driving in the fast lane can get pretty expensive especially if you live in Europe.
Source: CNBC.com
