The Traffic Police Department (TPD) clarifies that not all vehicles with obscured license plates due to mud or dirt will face penalties. Situations arising from uncontrollable external factors during travel will not result in fines.
According to the TPD, heavy rain, muddy roads, or adverse driving conditions can cause license plates to become dirty, making characters and numbers illegible. If this occurs unintentionally and the driver cannot prevent it, authorities will not issue a citation for “operating a vehicle with an unreadable license plate.”
For vehicles in continuous motion, including on highways, drivers are not required to stop immediately to clean their license plates if a safe stopping point is unavailable. In such cases, traffic police will not impose penalties.
However, once the journey ends or a safe stopping point is reached, drivers must clean their license plates. Continuing to drive with a knowingly obscured plate for an extended period may be considered a violation.
The TPD emphasizes that prolonged neglect of dirty license plates or failure to clean them after stopping will lead to penalties. During inspections, if drivers claim external factors caused the issue, authorities will verify through surveillance cameras, dashcams, and other methods before issuing fines.
Recently, a driver in Hanoi was fined 23 million VND and deducted 6 license points for driving with a completely obscured rear license plate on National Highway 32. This incident sparked significant debate on social media.
The driver admitted to knowing about the obscured plate for days without addressing it. The TPD states that penalties aim to prevent the misuse of unreadable plates to evade traffic cameras, hindering traffic management and violation enforcement.
Authorities urge drivers to regularly inspect and maintain clear license plates, ensuring compliance with regulations and minimizing legal risks while driving.
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