When Nic van der Walt received two traffic fines in short succession two weeks ago, he was upset with himself but then read the fine print.
The one fine was issued 18 January and the second fine for 3 February. Not knowing that fines have to be issued and served within 40 days, he went to pay it. But at the JMPD offices in Roodepoort he was told that they added interest on the fines which were R250 each and after interest came to R310 each.
Van der Walt then approached the Record to query this practice.
Howard Dembovsky of Justice Project South Africa (JPSA) says he believes it is not interest but an additional fee for the courtesy letter that gets issued when a fine is not paid within 32 days. Dembovsky explained the law which says that the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) act states fines must be issued and served within 40 days by registered mail.
The Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) however takes advantage of section 30(2) of the AARTO Act which states that a document which is sent by registered mail, is regarded to have been served on the infringer on the tenth day after the date which is stamped upon the receipt issued by the Post Office, unless evidence to the contrary is adduced, which may be in the form of an affidavit.
Spokesperson for JMPD, Wayne Minnaar also commented saying “there is no such thing as interest on fines. If someone receives a fine after the 32 day grace period they can approach the RTIA and apply to have the infringement revoked.”
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Also read: It’s fine with motorists
It’s official, JMPD to cancel fines
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