All motorists are obviously not equal when it comes to parking fines… A large majority of drivers driving cars with foreign license plates, with the exception of the French and the Dutch, do not in fact pay their fees. Questioned by Sevket Temiz (PS), the Minister of Mobility, Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) confirmed this Tuesday in committee that “the recovery rate of foreign plates is much lower than that of Belgian plates”.
Parking.brussels gives us the details: the recovery rate (therefore payment) of foreign fines “does not exceed 2%”if we omit Dutch and French vehicles… whereas this rate exceeds 70% for Belgian vehicles.
The agency works with a bailiff’s office… but this proves to be not very fruitful. The causes: a multiplicity of national systems, and “heavy procedures that generally do not succeed“, sighs the minister.
An exception therefore: French and Dutch vehicles. The federal government has negotiated a reciprocity agreement… and it works. The proceedings are therefore carried out in these countries, “as if there were no borders“… and successfully. Parking.brussels tells us that the rate of payment of French and Dutch fines is similar to that of Belgian vehicles.
“A problem that is getting worse”
Faced with this situation, parking.brussels plans to place shoes on foreign vehicles that are systematically at fault in the future. The management contract already provides for this, but it now lacks the approval of the municipalities and the modification of the regulations.
On this question, Saint-Josse, which is particularly affected by the phenomenon and which has not delegated its management to parking.brussels, is visibly taking the lead. “From the start“, clogs will be put on foreign vehicles in regular violation, tells us the alderman Philippe Boïketé (PS). Other entities have already implemented this system in the past.
“It has already been done at one time. We want to give a signal to the inhabitants, and also to those who respect the rules.” It must be said that the shortfall is significant for the small town: around 25% of Tennoodoise fines concern foreign vehicles, that is to say €627,000 on which the local authorities “don’t get much back.”
According to the alderman, the problem does not concern day tourists, but mainly residents who own a vehicle registered abroad to escape parking prices… as well as all car taxes. “It’s a growing problem. More and more people decide to buy a vehicle abroad and drive it in Belgium… They avoid the prices, the Lez, the taxes, the technical controls”denounces the agent.
