Unpaid traffic fines for rental vehicles reach millions in Cyprus

Cypriot Minister of Transport, Evanthia Tsolaki, recently reported to Parliament that the state has struggled to collect millions of euros in traffic fines involving rental vehicles. In response to an inquiry by DISY MP Prodromos Alambritis, the Minister revealed that since the implementation of the photo-enforcement system, 68,173 traffic violations involving rental cars with 'Z' license plates have been recorded.

Of these violations, only 3,428 have been paid, while 8,501 cases have had a driver identified and 15,118 cases remain without a designated driver. Most notably, in 41,114 instances, authorities have been unable to identify the actual driver, rendering the fines uncollectible. The total value of these outstanding violations is approximately 7.4 million euros, yet the state has recovered only about 1.06 million euros.

This data highlights a significant administrative challenge for the police in managing road safety enforcement for rental vehicles. While the ministry has indicated that the data required specialized processing to be extracted, the sheer volume of unidentified offenders continues to cause substantial financial loss for the state, with only 12 cases currently referred to legal proceedings.