Demerit points hiked for unlicensed vehicles

**Bald Eagle** · 5th April 2011, 13:13

They feeling a revenue loss already ?

Driving an unlicensed vehicle could soon see you banned from the road.
The fines for those driving unlicensed vehicles will be reduced and offenders instead handed demerit points, Transport Minister Steven Joyce has just announced.
He said the changes to vehicle licensing regulations will be a deterrent to those who try to dodge payment.
"We know there are people who would currently rather risk the fine than pay their licensing fees," Joyce said.

From May 1 the NZ Transport Agency could require people to surrender licence plates when putting their licensing on hold

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/poli...nlicensed-cars

**MSTRS:Me** · 5th April 2011, 13:25

Originally Posted by Bald Eagle

From May 1 the NZ Transport Agency could require people to surrender licence plates when putting their licensing on hold

This one sucks. How they going to put that into practice? Does that mean a new plate when you liven your rego? What about needing a current wof to be able to renew rego? Can't get a wof without a rego plate number, can you?

**Dave Lobster** · 5th April 2011, 13:29

That can't apply to vanity plates, surely??

**dogsnbikes** · 5th April 2011, 13:33

Like that's going too work

If people are driving unlicenced mode's of transport and not paying fine's now, demerits points going Is not going to change anything

as for the idea of surrending plates,FFS its easy to make up your own plates

At the end of the day the price hike in rego's Has not worked as they expected.

these clowns are just sucking farts out of dead seagulls.

even the coppers will be banging thier heads saying not more fucking paper work,maybe we should change the name of the police force to the clerk force.

**riffer** · 5th April 2011, 14:15

The fines for those driving unlicensed vehicles will be reduced and offenders instead handed demerit points, Transport Minister Steven Joyce has just announced.
He said the changes to vehicle licensing regulations will be a deterrent to those who try to dodge payment.

"We know there are people who would currently rather risk the fine than pay their licensing fees," Joyce said.
"That's unfair to other law-abiding motorists. Demerit points can act as a stronger deterrent than fines as repeat offenders will face the loss of their driver's licence."
If drivers got 100 or more demerit points within two years, they would be suspended from driving for three months. The current penalty is $200, which will reduce to $150 but with 20 demerit points.
From May 1 the NZ Transport Agency could require people to surrender licence plates when putting their licensing on hold. They could decline an application to put licensing on hold when a person had abused this right in the past.
"There is a segment of drivers and motorcyclists who put their vehicle licence on hold while continuing to drive their vehicle as a way of avoiding payment. These measures combined with the added threat of demerit points, send a strong message that the Government will not tolerate this," Joyce said.
"The largest segment of the licence fee is an ACC levy that covers the cost of road injuries. These people are on the road and face the same risks as the rest of us.''
The new penalties applied only to those tickets served personally by a police officer.
Police would continue to give a person, ticketed for the first time with an unlicensed car, a two-week grace period to licence their vehicle before any penalties applied.

Offence	Current penalty (will continue to apply when offence is enforced by a parking warden)	Planned new penalty (only for tickets personally served by a police officer)
Unregistered	$200	$150 plus 20 demerit points
No plates affixed	$200	$150 plus 20 demerit points
Driving while licence on hold	$200	$150 plus 20 demerit points
Unlicensed vehicle	$200	$100 plus 15 demerit points
Current licence label not affixed	$200	$75

from:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/poli...nlicensed-cars

**riffer** · 5th April 2011, 14:16

Hmmm.

There's a scary bit in there about the potential requirement to hand in your plate if you put your bike on hold.

Seems to me TPTB have discovered exactly what the impact of our not liking the ACC increases were and they are not happy with it.

**cheshirecat** · 5th April 2011, 14:17

Looks like they are suffering significant revenue loss - wonder why?

**DEATH_INC.** · 5th April 2011, 14:22

Originally Posted by riffer

Hmmm.

There's a scary bit in there about the potential requirement to hand in your plate if you put your bike on hold.

Seems to me TPTB have discovered exactly what the impact of our not liking the ACC increases were and they are not happy with it.

Unless you're an ostrich you knew it was coming....

**sleemanj** · 5th April 2011, 14:28

Can't say I'm surprised, but unless they do start requiring plates back to go on hold, I can't see it making THAT much difference to the numbers of bikers who put their bike on hold.

Many/most bikes have the reg label "on display" somewhere you need to look for to actually see it anyway (mines been behind the plate for years), the fines are unchanged for parking warden tickets, you get one "free pass" from the plod, and (touch wood) just how often do you get pulled up on a bike by the plod?

IF they do require plates back on hold... I can see a lot of people's plates having "fallen off" their motorbike just before they decided to "put it on hold". And IF they do start looking at odo readings, I can see a lot of people's bikes "being used off road while it was on hold".

**Trouser** · 5th April 2011, 14:29

Thats fucked that then. Bugger.

I still don't see why they would attach demerits for this when there a none for not having a wof.

**Bald Eagle** · 5th April 2011, 14:34

Originally Posted by Trouser

Thats fucked that then. Bugger.

I still don't see why they would attach demerits for this when there a none for not having a wof.

'Cos they didn't just hike the cost of a wof by mega bucks. It's clearly a 'safety issue"

**Katman** · 5th April 2011, 14:55

Originally Posted by riffer

There's a scary bit in there about the potential requirement to hand in your plate if you put your bike on hold.

Very scary.

I have no intention of ever handing in my original silver on black plate. Even if they swore that I'd get the same plate back I wouldn't put it past them to try swapping it for a new black on white version.

**Bald Eagle** · 5th April 2011, 15:04

OK so the math changes a bit
4 x tickets for riding on hold $600 plus 80 points, still cheaper than reg on 600cc+ bike .

**kave** · 5th April 2011, 15:13

Still much cheaper than rego-ing three bikes. I don't get pulled over often enough to be concerned about the demerits.

**bogan** · 5th April 2011, 15:16

Guess can expect another round of 'safety' roadside talks when this comes into effect then.

Pisses me off when they go on about fairness, while I've got three vehicles that I 'have' to license so I (singular) can use the road.