Experts explain

Five speeding drivers’ cars taken away: What can the authorities do?

Confiscation by the police is always provisional. Others have to decide.(Bild: P. Huber)

Since March 1, extreme speeders in Austria have been threatened with the loss of their cars. In March alone, 21 vehicles were confiscated. Alongside Lower Austria, Tyrol is one of the federal states with a particularly high number of confiscations. Representatives of the police and authorities explain how tricky the new regulation is, what they are allowed to do - and what not!

Excessive speed is the most common cause of serious accidents with fatalities. In order to stop extreme speeders, an amendment to the Austrian Road Traffic Act has been in force since March 1. This allows the authorities to confiscate speeding cars and sell them if necessary. In Tyrol, five vehicles have already been provisionally confiscated by the police - a record number in Austria.

What happens to these cars - and why have the vehicles been returned in all five cases? Police officer Enrico Leitgeb, deputy head of the provincial traffic department, and Herbert Haberl from the Kufstein district authority provide answers.