New rules of the Road Safety Law in place now.
January 1st is always used by the administration to introduce a series of regulatory changes that are regulated or fulfilled in calendar years. The DGT has added four new fines. The minimum penalties are noted but can rise up to 3,000 euros.
Mobile Phones
It was presented months ago and now a breach of the law is classified as a “serious offense.” It is one of the regulatory changes that has generated the most controversy, since it depends on the perception of the police or Guardia Civil to determine the fine.
To date, the use of the mobile phone, as well as other devices that imply that the driver must look away from the road, was sanctioned as long as an agent of the authority or any traffic technology device proved that it was being used. From now on the norm is no longer so lax . It will be sanctioned whenever a device is held in hand, whether it is being used specifically at that moment or not. Carrying the mobile phone in your hand will now be fined, before, for example, only its use was penalised while driving. The same will happen with browsers or headphones.
This misuse is already classified as a “serious offense” and a penalty of 200 euros will be imposed directly and 3 points will be withdrawn from the driving license , as stated in the Road Safety Law . The DGT has already noticed, through its social networks, that the mobile phone, for example, can only be used, inside the car, when a safe stop is being made, in traffic jams and red lights, you will also be fined for using a mobile phone .
How you can have your mobile in your car without risk of being fined . If the mobile is “on the dashboard, it would not be the subject of a complaint, as long as an approved support is used for this and is not manipulated while driving . ” However, he advises that if you need to use it, first stop “in a safe area.”
Seat Belt
As of January 2nd, the non-use of the seat belt or any Child Restraint System (SRI) will continue to be fined, as always . Although the economic amount of the sanction remains at 200 euros, from now on the agents will proceed to withdraw 4 points from the driving license and not the 3 established to date. In addition, the new Road Safety Law specifies that in addition to their non-use, their incorrect use will also be penalised.
Radar Detector
A change very similar to that of mobile phone use. Until now, a traffic officer had to demonstrate the use of a radar detector or jammer to proceed to punish this illegal act. From now on, this series of devices is expressly prohibited and a fine will be given whenever an agent notices the presence in the vehicle, regardless of whether or not it has been used recently before a speed control. FINE: 200 EUROS
Overtaking Speed
On secondary roads, the maximum speed limit reflected in the different road markings was allowed to be exceeded by 20 km / h to proceed with an overtaking maneuver. Traffic considers, and thus justified it in the change, that this acceptance implies assuming an excess of speed that is considered optimal for this type of road. From January 2nd that possibility disappears, so that you can only overtake at the maximum speed indicated on the road, it cannot be exceeded in any case.
