Switzerland to clamp down on foreign visitors’ unpaid parking fines
Tourist regions in Switzerland are finding it increasingly difficult to punish traffic offences and collect the corresponding fines.
Keystone-SDA
Select your language
Generated with artificial intelligence.
Listening: Switzerland to clamp down on foreign visitors’ unpaid parking fines
The Swiss government has agreed to look into the problem of parking fines and other driving-related penalties handed out to foreign visitors that go unpaid.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Français
fr
Faire appliquer les amendes de stationnement pour les étrangers
Original
“Infringements of the Road Traffic Act have no financial consequences for many tourists,” declared Bern parliamentarian Ursula Zybach in a recent written postulate.
She asked the Federal Council to look into possible action, such as legal changes, international agreements and other enforcement measures. On Thursday the Federal Council agreed to her request, without further comment.
According to Zybach, tourist regions in particular are finding it increasingly difficult to punish traffic offences and collect the corresponding fines.
The police usually receive drivers’ personal details and foreign notification addresses from car rental companies. However, often the bill or fine is not paid despite correct notification. And collecting fines in non-Schengen countries is “extremely difficult”.
“It must be assumed that for tourist communities, these are large amounts which cannot be collected in this way,” says Zybach. In Interlaken, in the Bernese Oberland, for example, the authorities have registered annual revenue losses of CHF400,000 – and the trend is rising.
Translated from French by DeepL/sb
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Climate solutions
Switzerland turns train tracks into solar power plants
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Swiss parliament rejects national microchipping scheme for cats
This content was published on
Switzerland should not introduce a nationwide mandatory microchip scheme for cats. On Tuesday, the House of Representatives rejected such an idea by 108 votes to 80.
Sharp rise in reported cyber incidents in Switzerland
This content was published on
The number of reported cyber incidents and online threats in Switzerland rose sharply last year, according to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).
Swiss National Bank ‘ready to consider’ negative interest rates
This content was published on
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is prepared to lower its key interest rate even further in the face of economic uncertainty, Chair Martin Schlegel said on Tuesday.
Toxic chemicals from car tyres found in fruit and vegetables in Switzerland
This content was published on
Tyre additives are transferred into the food chain, according to a new study in Switzerland. Further research is needed to establish the dangers for human health.
Swiss pensioner in court for feeding neighbour’s cat
This content was published on
A 68-year-old Swiss woman is in court in Zurich on Tuesday, accused of systematically feeding her neighbour's cat "Leo" - a criminal offence in Switzerland - so that the cat no longer wanted to go home.
SWISS flights to Tel Aviv remain suspended until May 11
This content was published on
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has cancelled all flights to and from the Israeli city of Tel Aviv until May 11 after a missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels landed near the airport.
Ministers discuss Swiss-EU deal with Italy and Hungary
This content was published on
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis held talks on Monday with their respective counterparts from Italy and Hungary.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.