Double demerits in Queensland: Drivers were wrongly given extra points for not wearing a seat belt
Nearly 2,000 Queensland drivers have been hit with unfair penalties due to a glitch in a new police surveillance system, prompting the Transport Minister to apologise.
More than 1,840 drivers caught not wearing their seat belts received four penalty points instead of two.
A sophisticated camera system installed on roads across the state automatically sent violations to drivers between November 1, 2021 and August 31, 2023.
A total of 626 drivers have had their licenses wrongfully revoked as a result of the outage, and a further 868 have had their good behavior bonds wrongfully collected.
Transportation officials have now begun the process to amend the issue and a helpline for affected drivers.
A massive glitch in a new road safety system in Queensland has wrongly issued 2,500 fines to more than 1,800 drivers (Photo: A driver without a seatbelt)
The new system (pictured), introduced in November 2021, wrongly awarded double penalty points to drivers who did not wear a seat belt and/or use their phone while driving
The Minister of State for Transport, Mark Bailey, said he was “very angry” about the accident and promised drivers the problem would be resolved immediately.
“Simply put, this should never have happened. I’m sorry to anyone affected by this,” Bailey said in a statement.
“My department is receiving urgent legal advice regarding the expeditious reissuance of wrongly suspended permits.
‘For other permit holders who have retained their permit but have wrongly lost points, Transport and Main Roads will refund the wrongly issued double penalty points.’
Mr Bailey said the offenses had been committed has been correctly registered and that the financial sanctions have been correctly imposed, but the double demerit points are incorrect.
It is expected to take months for a review of the matter to be resolved and in the meantime, drivers affected by the outage will have to live with the consequences.
Drivers who have had their license suspended have been urged to stay off the roads until their details are changed, acting Director-General of Transport and Main Roads Sally Stannard said.
“The current status of your license will remain in effect until the Department works with you to assess individual circumstances,” Ms Stannard said.
For those currently serving a bond of good behavior, they too must adhere to the terms of their sentence until told otherwise.
Queensland Transport Minister Mark Bailey has said he is “very angry” after discovering the error, and will work to correct the unfair fines in the coming months.
Between November 1, 2021 and August 31, 2023, drivers were sporadically affected by the higher penalty points, and until the issue is resolved, they have to live with the consequences
The new camera system was first introduced in November 2021 and has since caught ‘thousands’ of motorists talking on the phone or driving without a seat belt.
According to the Queensland Government website: ‘A driver will only be affected if: he has committed two or more seat belt infringements within a twelve month period; and One of those violations was a camera-detected violation in which a passenger failed to properly wear a seat belt.”
Fines for at-fault drivers start at $1,000 and can go up to $2,000.
The independent investigation into what went wrong with the system will solve the problem, the Transport Minister assured.
Legal experts are now working with the Department for Transport and Main Roads to re-issue all incorrect fines.
Drivers can still be hit with double demerit points for not following the rules if a passenger under the age of 16 is found in the vehicle.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Queensland Transport and Main Roads Department for comment.