Traffic violation that costs R$17,000: true or false?

Since we don’t live in “The Fast and the Furious”, you can’t go out and run around without getting home and being faced with a hefty fine. In addition to losing your driver’s license or having your vehicle impounded, there are traffic violations that can exceed R$17,000.

But calm down. It’s not the infractions speed cameras and crossing red lights will make a dent in your pocket. The Brazilian Traffic Code (CTB) is the document that dictates the parameters of good conduct in traffic, both for drivers and pedestrians. So, what traffic violation generates a fine of this amount?

Which traffic violation costs R$17,000?

The scare is justified, and even in national legislation this is the most expensive fine there is. However, many drivers do not know the nature of this infraction and other penalties that are applied in this case.

Before we get to the bottom of it, it’s worth knowing the context in which it was created. This rule was created by Law No. 13,281/2016 during the administration of former President Dilma Rousseff (PT). The measure was created to combat truck drivers’ strikes and illegal protests that make traffic on public roads in the country impossible.

However, this does not mean that the laws seek to block the population’s right to demonstrate. What it does mean is that there are legal parameters for the use of vehicles in this context.

According to article 253-A of the CTB, using “any vehicle to deliberately interrupt, restrict or disturb traffic on the road without authorization from the traffic authority or entity with jurisdiction over it” is a very serious infraction. The penalty for this infraction is a fine of R$293.47.

However, the law establishes that if the obstruction of the roads is of a more serious nature, the penalty can be multiplied by 20 (person who only participated in the act) or 60 (when the person is identified as the organizer). Therefore, in more specific numbers, we have a traffic violation that costs R$ 17,608.

Go money, go wallet, go vehicle

But the traffic violation that costs more than R$17,000 doesn’t just take the money. Committing this very serious violation also costs 7 points on your driver’s license and the vehicle is impounded to normalize the situation on the road.

It is worth noting that the driver will also lose the right to drive for a period of 12 months, regardless of how he or she participated in the obstruction of the road. And, in the event of a repeat offense during the suspension period, the amount of the fine may double to R$35,216.