[Display] Unauthorized vehicle tuning can result in entries in the German driving aptitude register (FAER) and thus points in Flensburg. The same applies to other traffic offenses such as ignoring red lights, exceeding speed limits and drunk driving. Many offenders try to circumvent the sanctions with so-called point trading. An illegal solution that has already resulted in convictions. Nevertheless, many cases remain without consequences due to legal gray areas. A change in the law initiated by the justice ministers of the federal states could change that soon.
The German point system
In the register of traffic offenders – as the Federal Motor Transport Authority in Flensburg likes to call the aptitude to drive register – data in accordance with Section 28 of the Road Traffic Act (StVG) is stored. Once road users conspicuous and their violations were rated with points according to the driving aptitude rating system, an entry is made. The number of points awarded at once depends on the severity of the violations:
- 1 point: Serious violations such as distancing, obstructing emergency vehicles and giving way.
- 2 points: very serious offences, such as disregarding the overtaking ban, drunk driving and failure to provide assistance.
- 3 points: Traffic offenses that are classified as criminal offenses are punished with three points. These include drunk driving with a minimum of 1,1 per mille and participation in car races.
Within the framework of the driving aptitude assessment system, there are several levels that can trigger further measures. If four to five points are saved, offenders will receive a written warning. This is not only billed, but is also linked to the recommendation to voluntarily attend a driving aptitude seminar. With six to seven points, the level for a warning is reached and a reduction of the score is no longer possible. More about the points system in Flensburg and the associated measure levels have been compiled by the mobility magazine for the German catalog of fines.
With eight points in Flensburg, the driver's license will be revoked. The driver's license must then be handed in and participation in road traffic is no longer permitted. In order to regain the driver's license - this can be done after six months at the earliest - vehicle drivers must present a positive medical-psychological examination (MPU).
Tip: Access to the driving aptitude register can be requested directly from the KBA online, conveniently and free of charge.
Points trading - many cases go unpunished
If the points account in Flensburg threatens to increase due to administrative offenses or even traffic offenses with the withdrawal of a driver's license as a result, dubious Internet providers and points trading agencies are tempting for many traffic offenders. The current scam is for people who didn't commit the offense to take the blame for a fee, and with it the points. We have the details on how to do this in this post described in detail.
Those who are caught trading with points can be prosecuted under Section 271 of the Criminal Code (StGB) for “indirect false certification”. Paying a straw man to give false testimony is punishable by three years' imprisonment. "The public prosecutor's office often investigates the perpetrators of the administrative offenses because of "false suspicion of indirect perpetration" and against the straw men because of "assistance in false suspicion", explains Tim Geissler, specialist lawyer for criminal law in one Contribution to the mediation of points in the lawyer portal. According to Geißler, a conviction of both parties was made as a landmark decision at the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court.
Despite the potential fallout, points trading is thriving. The reason: the authorities simply lack the capacity to consistently pursue all such crimes. In addition, the limitation period for prosecution begins three months after receipt of a fine. The officials don't have much time.
There is also a loophole in the law, which in the past has meant that the accused could not be held criminally responsible. For example, a false suspicion is only possible if a person actually exists. Since the point trading was partly carried out with non-existent persons, dubious service providers got away with it without being prosecuted.
Law change officially required
Evading sanctions for traffic violations is a thorn in the side of the justice ministers of the federal states for understandable reasons. “It annoys me that our authorities and the judiciary are currently being played for fools,” explains Marion Gentges (CDU), Minister of Justice in Baden-Württemberg. She provided the impetus for the decision. As Der Spiegel (issue 24/2022) reports in an article on trafficking in traffic offenses, the Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) was asked by the state justice ministers to take countermeasures in the form of a draft law. When this will be available remains to be seen.
