Nearly 10 000 warrant of arrests for unpaid traffic fines and contempt of court issued by CoCT

Nearly 10 000 warrant of arrests for unpaid traffic fines and contempt of court has been issued by the City of Cape Town, between July 2022 and June 2023.

PICTURE: Pixabay

Of these, says the City, 40 321 motorists ended up behind bars. This represented an increase of 36,2% year-on-year

In a statement, the municipality said that while it was slightly down on the warrants executed in the previous year, the number of motorists arrested increased from 29 592 to 40 321.

‘’There are many motorists who take responsibility for their actions and pay their fines timeously, and we thank them. Then there are those for whom fine payment is perhaps more of a challenge, whether it be the process of paying, or perhaps financial reasons. But we also need to accept that there are some motorists who simply do not want to pay. They have no regard for law and order, rack up infringements on a regular basis, and are very confident that they will not be caught. They are the reason why we have a Top 100 offenders list,’’ said JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security.

‘’The processes that our Traffic Officers have to abide by do make it tricky to execute warrants, but I think that scofflaws should sit up and take note of these statistics, because the odds of being caught are shifting,’’ he added.

Smith reminded motorists that they can settle a fine when they've received the infringement notice, or by going to court on a specified date in the infringement notice to state their case.

‘’Failure to do so results in a summons being issued, and continued non-compliance sees a warrant of arrest being generated for contempt of court. Traditionally, warrant executions relied on tracking and tracing operations,’’ said Smith.

With the world evolving in a technoligised space, Smith says the rollout of Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology also allows officers to scan licence plates on the go, to check for outstanding warrants or other infringements.

‘’We also use the ANPR technology at roadblocks and vehicle checkpoints, and generally, there is an increase in roadblocks as part of our festive season road safety efforts, so please settle your fines and make arrangements for outstanding warrants. It pays to be proactive, instead of being caught on the back foot,’’ said JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security.

 

Motorists can check whether they have fines or warrants by visiting www.paythat.co.za

 

Done By: Mitchum George