Finland Has 100k Speeding Fines For Millionaires, While People Question If It’s Fair, Tumblr User Points Out How Fair It Is
Speeding is a universal problem. Yeah, I get it, everyone has things to do and places to be. But, the amount of time people save by driving over the limit never outweighs the potential risk that it poses.
I often find myself seeing drivers whizzing past me only to be stopped at the next red light alongside me. And even if they manage to get to their destination earlier, it is never a case of them shaving off 10 minutes from their drive. More like 30 seconds. All the while, every single mile per hour exponentially increases the chances of getting into an accident. So, saving a handful of seconds isn’t worth the lives at stake.
Finland has a law that fines speeding drivers to an amount that is proportionate to their income
Image credits: Giannis Arvanitakis
Finland has come up with an ingenious way of fighting speeding drivers. They have enacted a law that determines one’s speeding fine based on the offender’s salary. This “day fine” system determines their financial punishment by calculating how much disposable income they have in the day. The standard is half of one’s daily salary. So, in other words, the more you earn, the higher the fine will be.
Sounds like an effective measure that proposes a weighted method of calculation. But wait—there’s more. There is another factor in play here, which is the severity of the offense. The fine may become gradually higher depending on how much the offender exceeds the speed limit. This means that a person who exceeds the speed limit by 10mph would get a smaller fine than someone who drives 20mph more.
This idea gave rise to a rather short-lived—but still very meaningful regardless—debate among internauts. Tumblr user alternian-neverland put the progressive speeding fine system perfectly into perspective:
Tumblr user stops all “fair/unfair” debates by providing a spot-on explanation of how just it really is
Image credits: alternian-neverland via Tumblr
He argued that making it proportionate and weighted is exactly what gives the impact. A person with 10 dollars loses 5—that is half of his wealth. A person with 100 dollars loses 5—that is just a twentieth. One will be affected much more than the other. By leveling the playing field and making so that everyone loses half (or any other meaningful amount) is what ultimately makes a difference in the face of the law.
The ultimate aim of these fines is safety. The World Health Organization has reported that around 1.35 million people die in road traffic accidents. Driving within the boundaries of the speed limit could have a significant impact on this number, as, according to the WHO, the risk of death for pedestrians hit by car fronts rises rapidly—a staggering 4.5 times from 30mph to 40 mph.
Image credits: Thomas Rousing
This has, of course, lead to some of history’s biggest speeding fines. Back in 2002, former Nokia director Anssi Vanjoki was caught driving 47mph in a 30mph zone on his motorbike and was fined $103,600. More recently, in 2015, Reima Kuisla, a Finnish businessman, had to pay $62,000 for driving 15mph above the 30mph speed limit.
Yep, you’ve already guessed where this is going. Guinness World Records claim that the largest speeding ticket belongs to a Swiss man who was caught driving 85mph in a 50mph zone in St. Gallen, Switzerland. He was fined for $290,000 US Dollars. The man was driving a Ferrari Testarossa, and the fine was based on his 22.7 million dollar wealth. The fine was made higher as he was a repeat offender.
Over 1.3M people die in traffic accidents—a huge problem which progressive fines are attempting to fix
Image credits: Kevin Galens
Oh, and before you go thinking that you have beat the system by saying “I don’t have a job, hence no salary”, things like social benefits are also included into the equation. Moreover, there is a set minimum fine if your income is below the threshold from which the fine is scaled.
Finland isn’t the only country to enact such a system for speeders. Apart from the aforementioned record broken in Switzerland, the UK also has a similar system in place. However, UK’s punishments for speeding are capped at £2,500, practically canceling out the entire progressive system. Other countries that fine on a “day-fine” basis are Estonia, Sweden, Germany, Denmark, France, and Macao.
Image credits: Ozzy Delaney
However, having a progressive taxation and fine system doesn’t necessarily mean that it is the best and only way to avoid deaths on the road. Some countries, like Sweden, moved to also establish stricter laws for drivers, imposing higher standards, and also improving their infrastructure. As pedestrians and cyclists are some of the biggest victims on the road, the country began building more roundabouts and pedestrian-only bridges.
So, the next time you’re driving, keep in mind that you can never know what might happen on the road. Speed limits are there for a reason, even if you might not know it. Drive safely and responsibly. Oh, and don’t forget to wear a seatbelt!
Fine is supposed to deter people from doing wrong things again, something that they shouldn't have done in the first place, like speeding. If a fine is negligible to some people, they wouldn't be bothered. So this sounds fair to me
I think you're spot on. Treating everyone the same way and being fair are not the same thing.
Load More Replies...Every fine should be like this, in every country. Make it proportional to the person's income, and more rich people would think twice about breaking the law. I've heard that some rich people think of fines as 'it costs $X to do X thing'. Thus reinforcing the idea that they are above others, and can use their money to do whatever they please. Give them a fine that stings their pocketbook, and then it becomes an actual deterrent; While, at the same time, not disproportionately punishing the poor.
There is a guy in my city who owns the only McLaren with that county tag on that color vehicle. I have probably 60+ dash cam recordings of this one jackass weaving in and out of a tolling lane around each car so he can push 100+ mph in midmorning traffic. It's a $25/per double line cross and he probably crosses it dozens of times each morning on his way in town. I've been nearly killed by this guy more times than I can count. The fines literally mean nothing to him. And, Leodavinci, most of the vehicles I see speeding are luxury vehicles that are upper middle to upper class cars. Not a dude in a Civic with a taillight out.
Load More Replies...Finland also has different speed limit winter and summer. Lower limits in winter saves a lot of lifes !
Look, if you're rich and don't think progressive fines are fair? Don't f*****g speed.
Here's another point. Aside from how much money it costs people to speed, the other factor is, if you don't care about what harm you may inflict on another by causing a serious accident due to speeding, you will at least be selfish enough to reduce your speed if you know it will cost you a bundle if you get caught. I'm tired of rich people spending their way out of abiding by the same laws the rest of us poor people have to follow. If it costs you a chunk of money to finally start caring about how your actions can impact someone else's life, then so be it.
Switzerland has the same policy, your fines are calculated on your earnings and they are designed to hurt. That is why Switzerland is in the book of records as handing out the highest fine of 300.000 $ to a motorist in a Ferrari doing 50kmh over the limit.
But the driver still kept his license. In the Netherlands he would have lost his license for at least 6 months.
Load More Replies...This is the same in Sweden, I am so increadibly happy that is how we do it
This why in a lot of countries, wealthy people see fines just as the "cost" to do something illegal, not as a punishment.
Perhaps it would be effective for a rich person, but it could be career-ending for a working-class person.
Load More Replies..."equal" is the argument by the wealthy who want to pay peanuts and be subsidized by the middle class and poor. Fair is what this is. When america wakes up to this reality, the brainwashed middle class won't be pissing on the poor and kowtowing to the rich.
Do no other countries have demerit points? In Australia I think you get 12, points are taken off when caught speeding, reckless driving etc. when you lose them all, you lose your license.
ok so the picture of the speeding car made me laugh due to radially blurred images. heres my favorite that makes me p**s myself(almost) for looking at it. the myth is real. radially burring any image makes it funny for no reason. download-2...452106.jpg
I can agree with this, with a caveat. Yes, it is proportional so it "hurts" the same. In theory, since someone who makes $400/mo pays the same percentage. BUT, even if the fine is $1mil the richer will still be able to buy food, and plenty of it with a simple skipped car payment, where the broke person may already be 6 payments behind. However, being equal, I agree. Let's apply this to taxes too...equal percentage of burden, the same percentage of their work pays for the stuff resources they use. It hurts the same, right? Flat rate, easy to predict your cost and it always feels the same (and a pay raise really means a pay raise, not a tax hike).
In my country, the rule is: the more money you make, the higher percentage of taxes you pay. Up to 20K annual income = 36,65%, from 20K to 70K annual income = 38,10%, Above 70K annual income = 51,75%.
Load More Replies...I llive in Finland and this is real nightmare. If the road has speed limit 80 km/h there are lot of speed cameras with 60km/h sign right before camera and after camera it change back to 80 so they are just ticket traps, nothing to do with road safety. My husband has pretty good salary but because of high taxes and four kids, stay-home wife, house, pet and living costs we would end up to bancrupty if he drives to this kind of trap. We couldn't pay that without loan. Everything he makes goes for normal living so no this it not fair. Also it's crazy that people who work hard, already pay tax over 50% of their salary have to pay more of everything and people who might just be laying home without working or drunk driving seriously endangering others won't pay almost anything.
Seriously??? Giving me minus tells something of you. People who use drugs or alcohol or stole cars and drives like crazy, young guys having speedi contests, teens who has just gotten their licence and want to show of to friends. All those people have almost zero income so they don't have to pay. Normal family with children coming home in the evening, driving totally safely just missing one of the tens of camera traps might have to pay like 20 000€ and you really think this is fair?
Load More Replies...Also consider the cost of time: a poor person can't justify spending $10 on a ride that saves them an hour, they'll just walk; I might think, depending on if I'd like a walk or not but will probably ride; but a cash-rich time-poor (say, lawyer with $1000/h billables) will happily pay $200--500 to save an hour of their very limited free time.
In essence, a "10h community service" punishment hits an employed person harder than an unemployed one; and the harder/more hours one works the hardest hit (which are either 70+h/week working business managers, or underpaid cleaners that have to combine three halftime jobs to get a living wage)
Load More Replies..."So are we to assume that most speeders are rich using this logic?". No. Nothing about this policy suggests in any capacity that rich people speed more (although by logic they do due to the relative punishment being lower). You are getting defensive about a point nobody is making. This isn't some class warfare thing.
Load More Replies...Breaking the law is not the same as eating a hamburger at McDonalds. Surely your realize that? As for a 'two tiered system based on income' yeah, it's called income tax and it's already in place. Speeding can kill you and others on the road, it's hardly comparable to eating at a fast food place or a restaurant. You would hire someone to speed for you? Wow. You sound pretty entitled -- you don't have the right to speed, you know that, right? It's illegal. No one is taking anything away from you with this law-- its pretty effing easy to avoid a jacked up fine in these countries as a rich person. Don't speed.
Load More Replies...You somehow made a post about speeding all about you. Impressive. BTW, paying the exact same percentage as someone else is as fair as fair gets by any stretch of logic. You line about how it punishes earners works the same in reverse too. Maybe the fines you'd get in America were meant for the rich and it's the poor people who pay a disproportionate amount in order to subsidize how low the fines are for the rich.
Load More Replies...????? Do you understand what 'equality' means? Clearly not. 'The state of being equal'. Thus, it's not equal for a millionaire to be paying a $400 fine, and a poor person struggling to survive paying $400. A fine based on someone's income is the very essence of equality.
Load More Replies...Fine is supposed to deter people from doing wrong things again, something that they shouldn't have done in the first place, like speeding. If a fine is negligible to some people, they wouldn't be bothered. So this sounds fair to me
I think you're spot on. Treating everyone the same way and being fair are not the same thing.
Load More Replies...Every fine should be like this, in every country. Make it proportional to the person's income, and more rich people would think twice about breaking the law. I've heard that some rich people think of fines as 'it costs $X to do X thing'. Thus reinforcing the idea that they are above others, and can use their money to do whatever they please. Give them a fine that stings their pocketbook, and then it becomes an actual deterrent; While, at the same time, not disproportionately punishing the poor.
There is a guy in my city who owns the only McLaren with that county tag on that color vehicle. I have probably 60+ dash cam recordings of this one jackass weaving in and out of a tolling lane around each car so he can push 100+ mph in midmorning traffic. It's a $25/per double line cross and he probably crosses it dozens of times each morning on his way in town. I've been nearly killed by this guy more times than I can count. The fines literally mean nothing to him. And, Leodavinci, most of the vehicles I see speeding are luxury vehicles that are upper middle to upper class cars. Not a dude in a Civic with a taillight out.
Load More Replies...Finland also has different speed limit winter and summer. Lower limits in winter saves a lot of lifes !
Look, if you're rich and don't think progressive fines are fair? Don't f*****g speed.
Here's another point. Aside from how much money it costs people to speed, the other factor is, if you don't care about what harm you may inflict on another by causing a serious accident due to speeding, you will at least be selfish enough to reduce your speed if you know it will cost you a bundle if you get caught. I'm tired of rich people spending their way out of abiding by the same laws the rest of us poor people have to follow. If it costs you a chunk of money to finally start caring about how your actions can impact someone else's life, then so be it.
Switzerland has the same policy, your fines are calculated on your earnings and they are designed to hurt. That is why Switzerland is in the book of records as handing out the highest fine of 300.000 $ to a motorist in a Ferrari doing 50kmh over the limit.
But the driver still kept his license. In the Netherlands he would have lost his license for at least 6 months.
Load More Replies...This is the same in Sweden, I am so increadibly happy that is how we do it
This why in a lot of countries, wealthy people see fines just as the "cost" to do something illegal, not as a punishment.
Perhaps it would be effective for a rich person, but it could be career-ending for a working-class person.
Load More Replies..."equal" is the argument by the wealthy who want to pay peanuts and be subsidized by the middle class and poor. Fair is what this is. When america wakes up to this reality, the brainwashed middle class won't be pissing on the poor and kowtowing to the rich.
Do no other countries have demerit points? In Australia I think you get 12, points are taken off when caught speeding, reckless driving etc. when you lose them all, you lose your license.
ok so the picture of the speeding car made me laugh due to radially blurred images. heres my favorite that makes me p**s myself(almost) for looking at it. the myth is real. radially burring any image makes it funny for no reason. download-2...452106.jpg
I can agree with this, with a caveat. Yes, it is proportional so it "hurts" the same. In theory, since someone who makes $400/mo pays the same percentage. BUT, even if the fine is $1mil the richer will still be able to buy food, and plenty of it with a simple skipped car payment, where the broke person may already be 6 payments behind. However, being equal, I agree. Let's apply this to taxes too...equal percentage of burden, the same percentage of their work pays for the stuff resources they use. It hurts the same, right? Flat rate, easy to predict your cost and it always feels the same (and a pay raise really means a pay raise, not a tax hike).
In my country, the rule is: the more money you make, the higher percentage of taxes you pay. Up to 20K annual income = 36,65%, from 20K to 70K annual income = 38,10%, Above 70K annual income = 51,75%.
Load More Replies...I llive in Finland and this is real nightmare. If the road has speed limit 80 km/h there are lot of speed cameras with 60km/h sign right before camera and after camera it change back to 80 so they are just ticket traps, nothing to do with road safety. My husband has pretty good salary but because of high taxes and four kids, stay-home wife, house, pet and living costs we would end up to bancrupty if he drives to this kind of trap. We couldn't pay that without loan. Everything he makes goes for normal living so no this it not fair. Also it's crazy that people who work hard, already pay tax over 50% of their salary have to pay more of everything and people who might just be laying home without working or drunk driving seriously endangering others won't pay almost anything.
Seriously??? Giving me minus tells something of you. People who use drugs or alcohol or stole cars and drives like crazy, young guys having speedi contests, teens who has just gotten their licence and want to show of to friends. All those people have almost zero income so they don't have to pay. Normal family with children coming home in the evening, driving totally safely just missing one of the tens of camera traps might have to pay like 20 000€ and you really think this is fair?
Load More Replies...Also consider the cost of time: a poor person can't justify spending $10 on a ride that saves them an hour, they'll just walk; I might think, depending on if I'd like a walk or not but will probably ride; but a cash-rich time-poor (say, lawyer with $1000/h billables) will happily pay $200--500 to save an hour of their very limited free time.
In essence, a "10h community service" punishment hits an employed person harder than an unemployed one; and the harder/more hours one works the hardest hit (which are either 70+h/week working business managers, or underpaid cleaners that have to combine three halftime jobs to get a living wage)
Load More Replies..."So are we to assume that most speeders are rich using this logic?". No. Nothing about this policy suggests in any capacity that rich people speed more (although by logic they do due to the relative punishment being lower). You are getting defensive about a point nobody is making. This isn't some class warfare thing.
Load More Replies...Breaking the law is not the same as eating a hamburger at McDonalds. Surely your realize that? As for a 'two tiered system based on income' yeah, it's called income tax and it's already in place. Speeding can kill you and others on the road, it's hardly comparable to eating at a fast food place or a restaurant. You would hire someone to speed for you? Wow. You sound pretty entitled -- you don't have the right to speed, you know that, right? It's illegal. No one is taking anything away from you with this law-- its pretty effing easy to avoid a jacked up fine in these countries as a rich person. Don't speed.
Load More Replies...You somehow made a post about speeding all about you. Impressive. BTW, paying the exact same percentage as someone else is as fair as fair gets by any stretch of logic. You line about how it punishes earners works the same in reverse too. Maybe the fines you'd get in America were meant for the rich and it's the poor people who pay a disproportionate amount in order to subsidize how low the fines are for the rich.
Load More Replies...????? Do you understand what 'equality' means? Clearly not. 'The state of being equal'. Thus, it's not equal for a millionaire to be paying a $400 fine, and a poor person struggling to survive paying $400. A fine based on someone's income is the very essence of equality.
Load More Replies...
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