New Traffic Code in Greece with heavy penalties and license revocation
Greece’s new Highway Code, which received Parliamentary approval in June of this year, entered fully into force after a trial period on Saturday 13th September. In an effort to reduce Greece’s poor record in traffic accidents and fatalities, it provides for substantially increased penalties for traffic offences, with severe fines and suspension of driving licences. In a new development, offences are recorded and there are increased penalties for recidivism. The authorities emphasise that the severity of the penalties are not intended as a punishment but as a tool for prevention. The main penalties for individual offences are as follows.
Use of mobile phone (without causing an accident)
Fine of €350, suspension of driving licence for 30 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 1 year.
Use of mobile phone (including causing an accident)
Fine of €350, suspension of licence for 30 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 4 years.
2nd repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 8 years.
Criminal sanctions: in all three cases, Article 290 A of the Penal Code on dangerous driving is applied, which includes penalties of imprisonment.
Suspension of confidentiality: for this particular offence, investigations may include the suspension of confidentiality of communications and data about the location and movements of the offender, subject to observance of the guarantees and procedures provided for by law.
Non-use of protective helmets
Fine of €350, suspension of licence for 30 days. The non-use of a crash helmet by the passenger is punished by a fine of €350, but also for the driver, even if the latter was wearing a helmet.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for up to 1 year.
Non-use of safety belt
Driver: fine of €350, suspension of licence for 30 days.
Passenger: the non-use of a seat belt by the passenger is punished by a fine of €150 for them, but also for the driver, even if the latter was wearing a belt.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for up to 1 year.
Driving under the influence of alcohol (0.50 – 1.10 g/L)
Up-to-date methods of detection which include narcotic substances are being introduced. Obligatory immobilisation and sequestration of vehicle.
For blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.5 to 0.8 g/L: fine of €350 and suspension of licence for 30 days.
For BAC of 0.8 to 1.1 g/L: fine of €700 and suspension of licence for 90 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 1 year.
Driving under the influence of alcohol (over 1.10 g/L)
Fine of €1,200 and suspension of licence and number plates for 180 days. The vehicle must be immobilised and impounded. Sequestration from 2 months to 5 years. Suspension of vehicle registration data by court order for 10 days to 6 months.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 7 years.
2nd repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 10 years.
Exceeding the speed limit by more than 50 km/h
Fine of €700 and suspension of licence for 60 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for up to 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for one year.
Speed over 200 km/h or “street races”
Fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 1 year.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 2 years.
2nd repeat: fine of €8,000, suspension of licence for 4 years.
Passing a red light
Fine of €700, suspension of licence for 60 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 1 year.
Passing a STOP sign (without causing an accident)
Fine of €350, suspension of licence for 30 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000 suspension of licence for 1 year.
Passing a STOP sign (including causing an accident)
Fine of €700, suspension of licence for 60 days.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 4 years.
2nd repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 8 years.
Driving without a licence
Fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 1 year, imprisonment for up to 2 years. In the case of an accident, the provisions of the Penal Code for dangerous driving apply.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 4 years.
2nd repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 8 years.
Obstruction of railway traffic
Fine of €1,200, suspension of licence for 60 days, imprisonment for up to 5 years and financial penalty of €2,000.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for four years.
2nd repeat: fine of €4,000, suspension of licence for 8 years.
Obstruction of public transport
Illegal stopping or parking which obstructs the access of public transport vehicles is classified as a traffic offence.
Fine of €350, suspension of licence for 70 days.
Taxi driven in bus lanes
Fine of €150 for entering a bus lane. The circulation of taxis and goods vehicles in bus lanes is forbidden, with the aim of improving the speed and reliability of the new fleet of buses in Athens and Thessaloniki.
Exceptions:
— Picking up and setting down passengers (when it does not obstruct a bus)
— Hours of darkness
— Zero emissions taxi
— Special taxi for the Disabled
Parking in Disabled bays
An increased administrative fine of €150 is imposed. Suspension of driving licence and removal of number plates for 60 days, while the vehicle is impounded on the spot.
Repeat offences:
1st repeat: fine of €1,000, suspension of licence for 180 days.
2nd repeat: fine of €2,000, suspension of licence for 1 year.
Speed limits
The general limit of 50 km/h will be retained until 1st of January 2026.
From 2026 new speed limits will be applied according to the type of road, unless otherwise indicated by signs.
(Haniotika Nea, 15/09/25)
What is left out
While this published list indicates the main offences which the government wishes to clamp down on, there are clearly other, minor offences not listed. There are presumably, for example penalties for driving at less than 50 km/h over the speed limit. An article posted on Keep Talking Greece on 1st June of this year reports that the following changes for speed limits are under consideration:
– 30 km/h in narrow residential streets or near schools
– 50 km/h on primary city roads with central dividers
– 140 km/h on highways, a proposed increase, pending review, following a reported decline in highway fatalities.
However, it seems unlikely that the speed limit on the VOAK will be increased to 140 km/h, at least on the stretch from Chania to Kissamos, since the road conditions preclude it.
Minor offences also incur stricter penalties
A recent article on the Kathimerini website investigated some minor offences which have also received stricter penalties. These included a number which come under the heading “antisocial road behaviour”, and include aggressive behaviour such as deliberately blocking a lane, and overtaking in a way which alarms other drivers. These can be punished by suspension of licence for 40 days, plus fines which vary according to the seriousness of the case.
According to the new Highway Code, failure to use the flashing direction indicators may be punished by a fine of €10 and licence suspension of 10 days. Also, the hazard warning lights should be used in motion only in cases where one’s vehicle has a problem and the safety of other road users is at risk (except when parking). In any other case the use of the emergency lights is illegal and according to Article 41, Paragraph 5, incurs a fine of €30 and licence suspension of 10 days.
One of the most common “mild” contraventions – that of the ban on parking on pavements, squares, special verges and safety islands, which are very common in highly populated town centres – is now subject to more stringent penalties. According to the new Highway Code, this habit can attract a fine of €30 and a licence suspension of 10 days.
Another “unknown” offence is that according to Article 33 of the new Highway Code, the left hand lane is to be used by passenger vehicles and motorcycles only as a passing lane and can only be used as a traffic lane when the others are congested. Contravention of this rule attracts a fine of €150 and suspension of licence for 20 days.
Reactions to the penalties
Commenting on the penalties, Sotiris Kaltampanis, head of the Attica Traffic Police Department, notes that the new Code has made provision for everything relating to driver’s obligations in cities and on departmental roads. “If, for example, someone is holding a coffee while driving, they are essentially in contravention of the Highway Code, which states that the driver of every vehicle must have complete freedom of movement so as to carry out the necessary manoeuvres unhindered,” he explains.
Giorgos Giannis, Director of the Traffic Engineering Laboratory at the National Technical University of Athens, explains that with the current installation of cameras in the capital, high-risk behaviour will be recorded and the penalties sent automatically to drivers. While believing that the new Highway Code is on the right lines, he feels that some of the penalties are excessively harsh.
“I agree with the institution of inspections and the imposition of all the fines specified by the Code… but when someone is going to have to give up their licence because they forgot to use a turn indicator, it is the sign of an excessive harshness which in some cases could have the reverse results.”
(www.kathimerini.gr)
Effective policing is the key
Inevitably, the effectiveness of all these measures will depend on policing. As happened during the pandemic, strict disciplinary measures tend to be enforced in the cities while the situation in the countryside is more relaxed. We do however have anecdotal evidence which suggests that the Chania Traffic Police, who have traditionally been more flexible with offenders – for example, sometimes avoiding taking away the licenses of people who live in isolated villages – are now pursuing a policy of zero tolerance. This is no doubt a consequence of the government’s determination to impose discipline through the new Highway Code, but also of the fatal accident on the Souda road in January after a police patrol failed to arrest an intoxicated driver. The result was the wholesale reorganisation of the Chania Police Department and the importing of senior officers from outside to effect a change of culture.
The fatal accident which took place on the Leoforo Karamanlis in Chania on 11th January this year prompted a crackdown on traffic policing and resulted in a reorganisation of the Chania Police Department. ( Haniotika Nea).
Source: kolymbaricourier.com
Photo credit: keeptalkinggreece.com
