Traffic police start imposing harsher drunk driving penalties

Vientiane traffic police officers are beginning to issue stiffer fines and confiscate the licenses of drunk drivers in a bid to reduce the number of road accidents in the capital.
According to a previous report from the police, drunk driving is a leading cause of road accidents. Accordingly, the 5th ordinary session of the Vientiane People’s Council last year discussed the issue and approved countermeasures.

Vientiane Police Office Deputy Chief, Lieutenant Colonel Youttaphong Souvannasing, who is in charge of traffic enforcement, told Vientiane Times yesterday “Today (July 1), traffic police are starting to enforce the law for drunk driving following the Prime Minister’s Decree No. 188 and the agreement of Vientiane Mayor No.1323,”
The alcohol level was set at less than 0.80 (g/l BrAC=80 mg/100ml) following the Prime Minister’s Decree No. 188, he said.
For the first time, police will confiscate an offender’s driver’s license for one month, and fine them at the rate stated by Prime Minister’s Decree No. 188, issued in 2007.
The decree states that drunk drivers of motorbikes and three-wheeled vehicles will be fined 50,000 kip.
Drunk drivers of cars, pickups, vans and jeeps will be fined 100,000 kip, while the drivers of passenger trucks will be fined 250,000 kip, and inebriated drivers of trucks with more than six wheels fined 500,000 kip. Drunken bus drivers will incur a fine of 1 million kip.
A fine of 30,000 kip will be imposed on motorbike riders and those in charge of three-wheeled vehicles who are found to be driving at high speed.
On the second offence, the police will confiscate a person’s driving licence for three months and increase the fines 10 fold. This means drunken riders of motorbikes and three-wheeled vehicles will be fined 500,000 kip, and drivers of cars, pickup trucks, jeeps and vans will incur a fine of 1 million kip.
The drivers of passenger trucks will have to pay 2.5 million kip, while drunk drivers in charge of trucks with six or more wheels will be fined 5 million kip, and bus drivers will be subject to a fine of 10 million kip.
On the third offence, police will confiscate a person’s driving licence for six months to one year with the fine increased 20 times the initial amount. Riders of motorbikes and three-wheeled vehicles will be fined 1 million kip, while the fine will be 2 million for drivers of cars, pickup trucks, jeeps and vans; 5 million kip for passenger truck drivers; 10 million kip for truck drivers and 20 million kip for bus drivers.
For a fourth offence, a driver will have his or her licence confiscated for one year and be fined 20 times the current amount for drunk driving.

By Phomphong Laoin
(Latest Update July 2, 2019)