Swiss Court Says $110,000 Tailgating Fine Is Totally Fair If You’re A Millionaire
- 2539 views
A Swiss motorist was fined over $100,000 for driving too close to the car in front of him on the motorway. That’s about double the worth of the car he was driving.
Switzerland is notorious for its strict driving laws and staggering fines.
The European country is one of the few where fines are calculated according to the taxable income of the offender, to ensure that they are felt by the poor and rich alike.
For example, a fixed $300 fine may bother someone earning minimum wage, but for a millionaire, it’s like a drop in the ocean.
In Switzerland, the wealthier you are, the more you pay, even for minor offenses, which leads to unlikely scenarios where people are fined huge sums of money, sometimes more than what their cars are worth.
Case in point, a Swiss lawyer who was fined over $110,000 for driving too close to the car in front of him on a motorway.
No one wants to mess with traffic laws in Switzerland, unless they have a deep appreciation for financial pain.
The country is infamous for its strict enforcement and staggering fines, which can turn a minor violation into a wallet-draining disaster.
Recently, a local millionaire was fined nearly $110,000 for tailgating on a motorway, a penalty he later contested in court.
That’s not a typo. In many places, that’s a solid annual salary, but in Switzerland, it’s just the price of being rich and following too closely.
While authorities have not released footage or images of the man tailgating to the public, he was sent to court and slapped with a 50-day fine of 1,970 francs per day
(equal to about $2,200 at current exchange rates).
That brought the total to 98,500 Swiss francs, or about $109,500.
The reason for the eye-watering amount? The fine was calculated based on his annual taxable income of 1.6 million francs (around $1.8 million).
Beyond the hefty fine, the Swiss court also ordered the man to pay 13,000 francs (~$14,500) in court fees, according to 20Min.
There is a silver lining, though—he won’t actually have to cough up the $110,000 unless he racks up another violation in the next two years.
Ref: Swiss Court Says $110,000 Tailgating Fine Is Totally Fair If You’re A Millionaire (carscoops)
