8.5 million traffic violations bring in €577.4 million for Belgium

8,4 million. That is the number of traffic offenses committed by motorists on Belgian roads in 2023. So reports Sudpresse newspapers, based on figures from the FPS Finance. Most of those violations were speeding violations (6,8 million). In most cases, these were not major speeding offenses but involved driving between 0 and 10 km too fast.

Consequently, 577.4 million euros were collected in fines for traffic violations. The General Administration of Collection and Recovery, a body within the FPS, received 389,2 million euros in immediate collections handled by the police.

To this, 34.6 million euros in amicable settlements must be added when the fined person did not pay the amount within the legal deadline for immediate collection or when that person accepted a settlement from the prosecutor to suspend criminal proceedings.

In addition, 442,669 payment orders were issued. Of that fine money, 72% or 53,7 million euros was collected. Finally, 142,309 criminal fines led to the payment of 99,8 million euros – with a recovery rate of 52%.

Flanders in the lead

The fines for traffic violations are distributed between the different levels of government. In 2023, 152 million euros went to Flanders, 84,3 million euros to Wallonia, and 27,4 million to Brussels, totaling 263,9 million euros.

The rest of the fine money went into the federal budget, which supports the federal police and local police zones. At the end of 2023, the De Croo government also provided more money for the federal police to invest extra in better traffic safety.

With that extra budget, dozens of extra people were hired, among other things, in the federal police’s Regional Processing Centers. It is at these centers that most traffic fines are processed.

The number of traffic violations on Belgian roads has increased for years. The main reason for this is the use of smart cameras or ANPR cameras, which recognize license plates. The bulk of violations—see the brown color in the first graph and the yellow in the second—are traffic speeding violations, where the motorist was driving between 0 and 10 km too fast.

A total of 114,678 people were fined for cell phone use behind the wheel and 46,712 and 12,636, respectively, for alcohol and drug use (more than 80% related to men in each case).

The province of Antwerp had the highest number of traffic violations (more than 1.5 million), followed by East Flanders (1.01 million), Flemish Brabant (about 780,000), and West Flanders (about 726,000).

In Wallonia, the province of Hainaut recorded the highest number of traffic violations (more than 720,000), followed by Namur (about 414,000) and Liège (about 287,000).In the Brussels-Capital Region, just over 469,000 traffic fines were issued.

All figures and graphs can be found on the Belgian police website.