Over 140 cars confiscated per week
From March 14, 2024, new regulations will apply in Poland introducing confiscation of property for driving under the influence of alcohol. Police confiscate more than 140 cars a week on average, but the number of drunk drivers on the roads has not decreased. During the month and a half of the new regulations being in force, over 1,570 people lost their vehicles.
Details of the new regulations
The new regulations provide for the confiscation of cars for drivers who have more than 1.5 per mille of alcohol in their blood, who cause an accident with more than 1 per mille of alcohol in their blood, and for recidivists. In the first three weeks after the changes were introduced, the police confiscated 480 cars, and in the following weeks as many as 1,091.
Effectiveness of car confiscation
Despite severe penalties, the number of drunk drivers on the roads has not decreased. Experts believe that confiscating cars is not an effective deterrent. Dr. Andrzej Markowski, a transport psychologist, points out that such sanctions do not affect drunk drivers who are unable to critically assess their behavior. In his opinion, educational and preventive activities would be more effective.
Examples from other countries
Similar regulations are in force in the Netherlands, Latvia and Lithuania, where they also did not produce the expected results. The experience of these countries shows that confiscation of property does not result in a significant reduction in the number of drunk drivers.
Plans for the future
The Ministry of Justice plans to introduce changes to the regulations on car confiscation. The new regulations are intended to make confiscation optional, which means that the court will be able, but will not have to, to impose such a sanction.
In nutshell, although confiscating cars from drunk drivers was intended to be a deterrent, its effectiveness is questionable. Experts suggest that better results could be achieved through educational and preventive activities that would more effectively influence drivers' behavior.
source:Rzeczpospolita
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