A few days ago, we reported that the
Department of Transportation and Communications, together with the
Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and the
Land Transportation Office,
will release the revised schedule of fines and penalties "for the
violation of laws, rules and regulations governing land transportation"
under
Joint Administrative Order 2014-01.
Well, the 25-page revised schedule has been released by the DOTC, and
as much as we'd like to list down all the fines and penalties, it will
be one lengthy reading material. Instead, we're noting the ones that are
relevant to most motorists:
* Driving without a valid driver's license -
P3,000
(from P1,500) plus the offender will be disqualified from being granted a
driver's license or from driving a motor vehicle for one year from the
payment of the fine;
* Driving a motor vehicle used in committing a crime -
P10,000
(from P3,000) plus the offender's driver's license will be confiscated,
and if convicted, revoked with the driver being perpetually
disqualified from being granted a driver's license. The vehicle will
also be impounded until after the payment of appropriate fines and
penalties;
* Reckless driving -
P2,000 (from P1,000) for the first offense;
P3,000 (from P1,500) for the second offense; and
P10,000 (from
P2,000) for the third offense. In addition, the offender's driver's
license will be suspended for three months for the second offense and
six months for the third offense, with the revocation of the license on
succeeding offenses. A non-professional driver whose license has been
revoked will be disqualified from obtaining a driver's license for two
years from revocation, while a professional driver whose license has
been revoked will be perpetually disqualified from getting a license;
* Failure to wear seatbelts -
P1,000 for the first offense;
P2,000 for the second offense; and
P5,000
for the third offense. Previously, the fine was only P250, regardless
of the number of offenses. Also, the driver's license of the offender
will be suspended for one week from the payment of the fine for the
third and each succeeding offense. The DOTC also notes that children six
years old and below are prohibited from sitting in the front passenger
seat;
* Failure to carry a driver's license or the vehicle's certificate of
registration or official receipt while driving a motor vehicle -
P1,000 (from P200 for the license and from P150 for the OR or CR);
* Driving an unregistered motor vehicle -
P10,000
(from P4,000) plus, if the non-registration has exceeded one month, the
vehicle shall be impounded and released only if it has been registered
and its corresponding fines and penalties have been paid. If the vehicle
has an undocumented engine (a separate P5,000 previously), the vehicle
will be impounded and barred from operating for one year upon the
payment of the fines while the engine will be confiscated by the
government;
* Unauthorized vehicle modification, including the change of color
"and other unauthorized modifications of the standard manufacturer's
specifications" -
P5,000 plus the vehicle will be impounded and released only upon correction of the defect and the payment of the fine;
* Operating a motor vehicle without or with defective/improper/unauthorized accessories, devices, equipment and parts -
P5,000
(from P150 to P15,000) plus the vehicle will be impounded until the
accessory, device, equipment or part is properly installed, corrected or
removed depending on the offense and the fine has been paid. Any
improper or unauthorized device will also be confiscated in favor of the
government;
* All other violations of traffic rules and regulations, from parking violations to illegal turns -
P1,000.
You can check out a PDF copy of the DOTC's complete revised schedules on the fines and penalties at
www.dotc.gov.ph.
Now that fines and penalties on traffic violations increased by more than double, with a double whammy rule that on the 2nd offense for "reckless driving", 3 months suspension of license. It's too much!!!!!. I am pretty sure kotong cops will take advantage of this. And will have bargaining power to double charge offenses(illegal turns+reckless driving), to increase their 20% commission.
Such an inconsiderate GOVERNMENT.
