Two of them permanently

70 speeding cars confiscated throughout Austria

(Bild: Peter Tomschi)

Since the new road traffic regulations in Austria, under which cars of extreme speeders may be impounded, only two have been permanently confiscated. So far, a total of 70 speeding cars have been temporarily confiscated by officials.

According to standard.at, Lower Austria (18) and Tyrol (15) have seen the most confiscations. However, the exact number of vehicles confiscated cannot be determined. According to the Ministry of the Interior, this is a "complex matter". This means that there is no nationwide authority that can provide an exact number of confiscations.

Over 80 km/h in the local area
Since March 1, the 34th amendment to the Road Traffic Act (StVO) has made it possible to confiscate and subsequently auction off a vehicle if the speed limit is exceeded by more than 80 km/h in urban areas and 90 km/h outside urban areas.

Confiscation for a maximum of 14 days
If the speeding driver is driving a vehicle that does not belong to them, law enforcement agencies have the option of temporarily impounding vehicles on the spot for a maximum of 14 days. In this case, however, the vehicles may not be declared forfeited and auctioned off. This also applies to leased or rental cars. In such cases, a lifetime driving ban is entered on the driver's license of the speeding driver.

However, the final confiscation and possible auctioning of speeding cars is the responsibility of around 80 provincial criminal authorities throughout Austria.

Two cars permanently impounded
One of the two permanently impounded cars comes from a 21-year-old from Lower Austria who was caught by the police at 247 km/h. So far, however, no auction proceedings have been initiated. However, no auction proceedings have taken place so far. The second vehicle was in the district of Bruck-Mürzzuschlag in Styria. Also without an auction.

Last case so far in Tyrol
Most recently, a Tyrolean man (20) with three children (aged 4, 9 and 10) in the car had his vehicle and driving license confiscated after driving 74 km/h too fast on a country road.