Swede could face huge speeding fine — up to $962,000

[BATMANs]

One Swedish motorist could be facing a gargantuan speeding fine — up to $962,000 — after he was caught driving 180 mph along a Swiss motorway.
Police seized the Swede's driver's license and 570-horsepower black Mercedes-Benz after he was released from police custody, The Local, a website that covers Swedish news, reported. He could face a penalty of up to 1 million Swiss francs — or $962,000 — depending on his income level, The Local reported.

In Switzerland speeding fines are based on the severity of the offense and the offender's income level.

Police said the 37-year-old motorist was driving so fast in this $240,000 sports car that it took him nearly half a mile to stop.

Swiss officials did not know if it was a record, but that it "looks very close to one," federal roads office spokesman Thomas Rohrbach told AFP.

"We have no record of anyone being caught traveling faster in the country," a police spokesman told Britain's Daily Telegraph on Friday.

The driver's explanation to officers: "I think the speedo on the car, which is new, is faulty."

A speed camera on the A12 highway between Bern and Lausanne captured the transgression.

Police said he had eluded being zapped by numerous radars en route simply because he was going too fast and they were unable to clock speeds beyond 125 mph. A newer camera perched along the motorway was able to snap his offense.

It's not the first time someone has had to pay such a hefty fine in Europe for speeding. And even lower speeds can generate big fines.
In January, a Swiss court slapped a $290,000 speeding ticket on a millionaire Ferrari driver who drove 60 mph (nearly twice the 30 mph limit) through a small village.

The head of Finnish communications giant Nokia was ordered to may a $103,000 fine for his speeding ticket in 2002. Officers pulled over Anssi Vanjoki on his cherry red Harley Davidson in Helsinki after he was clocked driving 47 mph in a 31-mph zone.

In Finland, traffic fines are also proportionate to an offender's crime and income level.

 

[BATMANs]

I'm going to guess it's the SLS

 

[HIJACKER]

Love the SLS - saw one last weekend for the first time at a cars & coffee:

Pic:
http://www.scc-photography.com/Car-Shows-Track-Events/CC-GreatFalls/13260925_6roXx#963056307_7nfdB

 

[NSXLuvr]

What a stupid law! I can't believe people in any country would agree to this type of blatant taxation. Then again I am sure we have some ridiculous laws too.

 

[NSXrunner]

What a stupid law! I can't believe people in any country would agree to this type of blatant taxation. Then again I am sure we have some ridiculous laws too.

Going to put my flame suit on just in case as I know we have some lead foots in our NSX family. :redface::biggrin: I actually like the law. You get fined based on what you make or your net worth. Makes perfect sense to me. It reduces the ability of rich folks to "do whatever they want" because they can afford to. On the flip side, a jobless, homeless man can up and steal a Bugatti, get busted doing 200mph and pay nothing! :tongue::biggrin: Not dissing other folks opinions, just adding my twisted sense of thinking to the conversation.

 

[peiserg]

Going to put my flame suit on just in case as I know we have some lead foots in our NSX family. :redface::biggrin: I actually like the law. You get fined based on what you make or your net worth. Makes perfect sense to me. It reduces the ability of rich folks to "do whatever they want" because they can afford to. On the flip side, a jobless, homeless man can up and steal a Bugatti, get busted doing 200mph and pay nothing! :tongue::biggrin: Not dissing other folks opinions, just adding my twisted sense of thinking to the conversation.

Flame suit on you said? ok.

This has nothing to do with lead foot or no. This has to do with being unreasonably punished. Would you give someone more prison time because he's a school teacher than a janitor doing the same crime? Or fine the janitor more for littering because he makes more than the dishwasher?

Part of the "benefit" of making money, is being able to spend without having to worry too much about it. what's the point in making money if it doesn't allow you freedom (within the confines of the law).

Sounds like another hidden tax to me. Just another way for people who don't really want to work for a living to squeeze money from people who do.

Don't take this to condone doing 180 on a public roadway. I would have said the same exact thing if the crime was littering, and the rich guy gets a larger fine. Just another example of how people who don't want to get off their collective asses and do anything other than take money from people who DO.

 

[NSXrunner]

Flame suit on you said? ok.

This has nothing to do with lead foot or no. This has to do with being unreasonably punished. Would you give someone more prison time because he's a school teacher than a janitor doing the same crime? Or fine the janitor more for littering because he makes more than the dishwasher?

No harm, no foul, I got a thick flame suit hehe. :biggrin: I was thinking strictly from a fine perspective, not jail. But yeah if the person makes more, then they pay more. To me it's not about getting more money and singling out those who are successful and work hard for what they have, it's about keeping the law fair. If it's going to hurt the wallet of person with less money, then its should also hurt the wallet of the person with more money. I agree with the "benefits" of money you mentioned, but that should not include the ability to shrug off laws simply because you can afford to. Since you mentioned confines of the law, there was a link here with a Lambo and Konigsegg that got booted for parking illegally. It was laughed at because the owners probably didn't care and could afford the paltry $70 fine or whatever it was. However if you turn that around and make the fine reflect their income or networth, I can guarantee they probably wont park illegally again. Keyword "illegally". If you don't break the law, then you don't have to worry about a fine and you can go spend like a mad man.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[peiserg]

No harm, no foul, I got a thick flame suit hehe. :biggrin: I was thinking strictly from a fine perspective, not jail. But yeah if the person makes more, then they pay more. To me it's not about getting more money and singling out those who are successful and work hard for what they have, it's about keeping the law fair. If it's going to hurt the wallet of person with less money, then its should also hurt the wallet of the person with more money. I agree with the "benefits" of money you mentioned, but that should not include the ability to shrug off laws simply because you can afford to. Since you mentioned confines of the law, there was a link here with a Lambo and Konigsegg that got booted for parking illegally. It was laughed at because the owners probably didn't care and could afford the paltry $70 fine or whatever it was. However if you turn that around and make the fine reflect their income or networth, I can guarantee they probably wont park illegally again. Keyword "illegally". If you don't break the law, then you don't have to worry about a fine and you can go spend like a mad man.

Just my 2 cents.

yes if you check that thread out, i was one of the ones who said "fine, stick the boot on, they parked illegally, they should pay the fine and impound the car."

What i would NOT have agreed with, is if the Lambo car gets a $50,000 fine for parking, simply because it's a more expensive car. That's just another BS tax on people who make more than someone else.

Like the new taxes on people who pull down more than a mill a year. I don't make a million plus a year, but i am strongly against making someone that DOES pay an extra penalty for doing so. That's just less disposable income for me to spend on my employees, shopping, house payment, whatever. The people how "pay" for that higher tax, in addition to the person paying it, are the people who would have benefitted from the spending of that money.

 

[NSXrunner]

yes if you check that thread out, i was one of the ones who said "fine, stick the boot on, they parked illegally, they should pay the fine and impound the car."

What i would NOT have agreed with, is if the Lambo car gets a $50,000 fine for parking, simply because it's a more expensive car. That's just another BS tax on people who make more than someone else.

Like the new taxes on people who pull down more than a mill a year. I don't make a million plus a year, but i am strongly against making someone that DOES pay an extra penalty for doing so. That's just less disposable income for me to spend on my employees, shopping, house payment, whatever. The people how "pay" for that higher tax, in addition to the person paying it, are the people who would have benefitted from the spending of that money.

I am with you on the taxes to the folks that make more money. Lame because they didn't do anything wrong, except work hard. But I am still on the side of, if you break the law, then the fine should reflect what you make. I have nothing against people having as much disposable income as they want to enjoy life, but I just want to make a point that enjoying said life includes not breaking the law, regardless of how stupid said law is. Until the law is changed on the books, it is still the law. You are also getting into how they spend the money from the fines. That's a different topic altogether and I agree the people in charge could put said fines to better use. Again I am strictly speaking from the fine standpoint, and breaking the law. Nothing more.

We must agree to disagree sir. :smile: