Austria cracks down on Super Speeders with vehicle confiscation law

In an effort to curb the growing number of fatalities, Austria has implemented a new law aimed at “super speeders”. The law allows the government to impound and even sell the vehicles of drivers who exceed the speed limit by 60 kilometers per hour (about 37 mph) or more. The move is part of a wider effort to improve road safety, following a rise in road deaths in recent years.

Despite having safer roads than many other wealthy countries, including the US, Austria has not been immune to this global trend. The United States, for example, saw fatalities hit a 16-year high in 2021, with a 13.6% increase in deaths in 2023 compared to 2019.

The new law in Austria has already made its presence felt. Vera Hofbauer, Austria's director general of transport, revealed that a “super speeder's” car was seized within hours of the law being enacted. In 2022, Austria recorded 4.1 road deaths per 100,000 people, prompting Hofbauer to argue that “drastic measures” are needed to deter drivers who treat their cars “like a weapon”.

Austria is not alone in its efforts to combat dangerous driving. Several European countries have implemented strict road safety regulations, with some even calculating speeding fines based on a driver's income, resulting in stronger penalties for wealthier people. For example, in Switzerland, a driver was fined more than $1 million in 2010 for driving his Mercedes sports car at approximately 180 mph in a 75 mph zone.

The European Union has also stepped up its efforts to improve road safety. By 2022, it required all new cars from 2024 to have technology that alerts drivers when they exceed the speed limit, a move expected to reduce road deaths by 20%.

These strict laws seem to be effective. Countries with the strictest road rules, such as Switzerland, have the safest roads, with around 2.6 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants each year. This number is significantly lower than the US road fatality rate of 12.8 per 100,000 in 2022. Hofbauer believes that even unconventional measures to reduce crashes should be explored, stressing the importance of road safety.