In some countries, traffic fines are adjusted based on the offender’s income - a system known as "day fines" - to ensure that penalties are equally impactful regardless of wealth. This approach aims to create fairness by making fines proportionate to the driver’s ability to pay, rather than applying the same flat rate to everyone. Proponents argue that income-based fines make penalties more equitable, as flat fines may be insignificant to the wealthy but burdensome to low-income individuals. Opponents argue that penalties should be consistent for all drivers to maintain fairness under the law, and that income-based fines could create resentment or be difficult to enforce.
Here are the top political news stories for today.
@ISIDEWITH1yr1Y
Yes
@B4TBWC61yr1Y
traffic fines are a method of raising funds, not preventing speeding. If you increase their capacity to raise funds you then create the insentive to artificially lower speed limits, increase speed traps and act in hostile ways towards the biggest infristructure network in the UK. If you want to reduce speeds, change the road design, otherwise raise the limit to one that 80% of drivers feel is acceptible.
@ISIDEWITH1yr1Y
No
@B4TBWC61yr1Y
Traffic deaths have dropped more than 75% in the last 50 years despite the drastic increase in the number of cars and people. you are 20x more likely to be killed by obesity than a car so maybe more focus on improving mortality rates elsewhere before turning to cars, instead we should only look to improve infristructure and improve peoples ability to move in order to raise living standards and increase growth
@BC89K4C4wks4W
Yes and if the driver is an Illegal, if the Vehicle is stolen or if they don't meet minimum driving standards, it should also depend if a child was involved in the violation.
@BC3DR9R1mo1MO
to an extent, yes, but not so much that it would encourage low income people to speed as they can afford to pay
@BBRCQK32mos2MO
Yes but only if they cannot afford to pay the fine; in such a situation the fine would be lowered so that they can afford it
@BBGBYB22mos2MO
It depends if the reason is oppression and if it supports those who receive lower income, and it’s targeting towards those who are wealthy.
@B9K5RVY3mos3MO
Depends on the situation. A parking or speeding fine for me is a lot of money. For footballers it’s nothing. Penalise the repeat offenders more.
A crime that is punishable by a fine is a crime for the poor only. Fines, as they stand, should be replaced.
@B8CWMDC5mos5MO
Proportionate change to this as it already does, there should still be a max cap, but there should definelty be bands
@B85V8776mos6MO
Yes but only for those earning significantly more than the average UK resident because otherwise it is no deterrent at all
@B7MNWKB 6mos6MO
No, if you broke the law... you broke the law- no special treatment.
@B7PXW3L6mos6MO
The penalty should depend on the current value of the vehicle and whether the offender has history of any previous traffic violations.
@B7DCP6Q7mos7MO
If its a minor offense yes anything worse than running a stop sign shouldn’t take account for their income
@B74S2YM7mos7MO
Yes, and have all fines be relative to the offender's income
@B6TZ9LB8mos8MO
Yes but only if the driver's income is very low and they are on benefits.
@B6QQGQS8mos8MO
Yes, every tax (aka crime tax (e.g speeding etc) should have a tax rate that is progressive, but not too progressive
@B6J9K298mos8MO
This is unrealistic to implement, but good in theory
Yes, but only by increasing the penalty for wealthier offenders.
@B55XP2H12mos12MO
Yes, but it should also consider their other assets in that decision
We should just follow the incumbent rules that have work for many years and look for its effectivity on handling those situations regarding traffic violtions. We shouldn't judge penalty based on driver's income. Everybody equals before the law.
@B2CWQXQLiberal Democrat 11mos11MO
Yes, but make it depend on the value of cars and property owned by the driver's household as well as income
@B57TWR612mos12MO
Yes, to a certain reasonable extent. It should be capped at a certain point to ensure it is fair.
@B4J9QHS1yr1Y
I think that this should be decided on a case by case basis and should be at the police and courts discretion
@B4F3WWD1yr1Y
Higher income drivers have more severe punishments
Deleted11mos11MO
Yes, this would be fair to men who are disproportionally affected by traffic violation penalties
@B6GD9579mos9MO
The UK should move away from the current system of fixed-rate fines and adopt a comprehensive system of income-based "day fines" that ensures a punishment is felt equally by all, regardless of their wealth, and use this as a catalyst for broader reforms that prioritize public safety through education and community-based programs over punitive and hierarchical fines.
@B6WQPYW8mos8MO
Depends on the risk they posed and the consistency
Loading the political themes of users that engaged with this discussion
Loading data...
Join in on more popular conversations.
