How is the act of covering or flipping license plates handled?

Surveillance camera system on National Highway 1A, section through Nghe An. Photo courtesy of D.C.

Intentionally covering license plates for many purposes

The above behavior not only violates the Road Traffic Law, but also has many unpredictable consequences for security and order. In fact, in addition tolicense plate coverTo avoid the camera system for fines, some people intentionally cover their license plates to commit robberies.

Typically, on the afternoon of July 31, 2021, on National Highway 46, 15A, through Nam Dan town, Xuan Hoa commune, Thuong Tan Loc, Nam Dan district, there were 3 consecutive robberies of property of passersby. Because the subject wore a mask, wore a sun jacket to cover his face, drove a motorbike with a covered license plate during the crime and then quickly fled the scene, the police force encountered many difficulties in the process of checking and building a model of the subject.

During the process of expanding the scope of the subject in Vinh city and the districts of Hung Nguyen, Nam Dan, Thanh Chuong, Do Luong, the Special Investigation Committee of Nam Dan District Police identified the subject Bien Huu Truc (born 2001), residing in Long Giang hamlet, Thanh Long commune, Thanh Chuong district, as the person who used a motorbike with a covered license plate to commit 3 robberies in Nam Dan district, so they decided to solve the case.

Evidence of the case of using a motorbike to cover the license plate to snatch. Photo: Manh Cuong

At 2:30 p.m. on August 2, 2021, at Long Giang hamlet, Thanh Long commune, Thanh Chuong district, the Investigation Police Agency of Nam Dan district executed an emergency detention order against Bien Huu Truc for the act of "Robbery". At the same time, they searched the suspect's residence and seized a Wave Alpha motorbike with license plate 37E1-68500, the vehicle that Truc used to commit the crime, and the victim's assets, including 2 mobile phones. At the investigation agency, Truc confessed to all of his crimes.

In addition, recently in the area there have been a number of cases of young people covering their license plates to perform acts of weaving, swerving, and racing.

A group of young men weaving and doing wheelies on their motorbikes on National Highway 7A through Anh Son town. Photo taken from the clip

Typically, on the morning of February 28, 2021, a young man without a helmet, driving a pink motorbike with a covered license plate, wheelied the bike and drove at a fairly high speed on National Highway 7A, through the town of Anh Son district. Following that, two other bareheaded young men on a white motorbike also did the same. The clip and images appeared on social networks.

After receiving the information, Anh Son District Police got involved and quickly identified NVS (born in 2003), residing in Dinh Son Commune, Anh Son District, as the driver of the pink car. When summoned to the police station for questioning, NVS admitted his violation.

Similarly, on the afternoon of June 1, 2021, based on evidence provided by the people and videos posted on social media by the subjects, Quy Hop District Police summoned a group of 4 young men who frequently drove motorbikes.wheelie,zigzagging and causing chaos on the roads in the area, including: KNH (born in 2006, residing in Nguong village, Chau Cuong commune), TMQ (born in 2004, residing in Son Tien hamlet, Tho Hop commune), LTB (born in 2006, residing in Vuc village) and PVK (born in 2006, residing in Na Lau hamlet) all in Chau Ly commune. Among them, TMQ and PVK often ride their motorbikes doing wheelies and then record videos to post on social networks to show off their "achievements".

Subjects using motorbikes (with covered license plates) to weave and swerve were summoned and processed. Photo: Phan Giang

At the police station, the subjects confessed to having gathered to perform 4 wheelies, weaving, swerving, removing license plates, covering license plates with medical masks, and filming videos and posting them on social media on the evenings of April 22, 26, and May 3 in Tinh Gia district (Thanh Hoa) and on the evening of May 9 in Quy Hop town.

Strictly handle

According to Dr. Lawyer Nguyen Trong Hai - Director of Trong Hai Law Firm and Associates: The act of covering and pasting license plates is not a new violation and the purpose of covering and pasting license plates is mainly to avoid cameras recording violations for fines. In response to the above situation, on December 28, 2021, Decree No. 123/2021/ND-CP amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Decrees regulating administrative sanctions in the fields of maritime; road and railway traffic; and civil aviation was issued. Accordingly, the Decree has increased the fines for many violations related to license plates.

Dr. Lawyer Nguyen Trong Hai. Photo courtesy

For the act of using a device to cover or flip a license plate, the authorities will verify whether the vehicle has a fake license plate attached to it in addition to this device. After verification, the responsibility of the driver and the vehicle owner will be considered. Accordingly, the car driver will be fined 4,000,000 - 6,000,000 VND if using a license plate cover device or using a license plate flipping device with a fake license plate, a license plate not issued by a competent authority... In case of using a flipping device with a fake license plate, the driver will also have his/her driver's license revoked for 1-3 months and the violating license plate confiscated.

In addition, car owners who are not drivers will be fined VND 6,000,000 - 8,000,000 for individuals and VND 12,000,000 - 16,000,000 for organizations according to the provisions of Point m, Clause 17, Article 2 of Decree 123/2021/ND-CP amending and supplementing Point h, Clause 9, Article 30 of Decree 100/2019/ND-CP. Additional penalties for vehicle owners include confiscation of fake license plates and license plate-changing equipment.

In addition, according to Decree No. 123/2021/ND-CP, the act of trading in devices to cover or flip license plates will be subject to administrative sanctions. However, for the act of trading in violating devices, in order to handle it, it is necessary to clearly analyze the level and nature of the violation. If it is an act of trading in devices to cover or flip license plates with fake license plates, Decree No. 123/2021/ND-CP stipulates a fine of VND 10,000,000 - 12,000,000 for individuals, VND 20,000,000 - 24,000,000 for organizations. The act of producing devices to cover or flip license plates along with fake license plates will be fined from 30,000,000 to 35,000,000 VND for individuals and from 60,000,000 to 70,000,000 VND for organizations.

"Currently, the provisions of current laws do not clearly state whether products used to cover or hide license plates (without fake plates) are on the list of prohibited products for trading, selling, and manufacturing or not. While policies for handling are being finalized, it can be said that Decree No. 123/2021/ND-CP with fines increased 5-6 times will directly impact the behavior of manufacturing, buying, selling, and using these devices" - Dr. Lawyer Nguyen Trong Hai added.