DOHA: The Ministry of Interior has increased towing charges for vehicles seized for violations.
The charges have been raised to QR500 for bigger vehicles weighing three tonnes (when empty) and above, and to QR200 for light vehicles.
The fine for not claiming a seized vehicle is being raised to QR20 per day from QR15. The towing charges, according to the old traffic law (of 2007), were QR200 for larger vehicles (three tonnes and above) and QR150 for light vehicles (under three tonnes).
The old traffic law (No. 19 of 2007) was amended and came into force last year. Article 89 of the old law had provisions for towing charges and fines.
The new law (No. 16 of 2015) gave the Ministry of Interior the authority to fix towing charges for seized vehicles. The Department of Traffic works under the Ministry of Interior.
So, the Ministry submitted a proposal to the State Cabinet to raise rates and fines in the form of a draft decision. The Cabinet, at its routine weekly meeting yesterday, approved the Interior Ministry’s draft decision, Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.
The ministry seizes cars for various reasons, including faulty parking, faulty overtaking, abandoning a car for long in a public place or breaking other provisions of the traffic law. Such vehicles are towed by the ministry using a special automobile and taken to traffic impound yards of which there are several in the country. According to the 2015 law, a seized car must be claimed by its owner within three months.
The fine for letting the car remain in the traffic police impound yard will now be QR20 per day.
The new law (No. 16 of 2015) also gives the Interior Ministry the right to auction off a seized vehicle if not claimed within three months.
In that eventuality, the ministry deducts from sale proceeds of a seized and unclaimed car its fines and charges. And then it returns the remaining amount to the owner. However, if the amount received from sale proceeds of an auctioned car is less than fines and charges, the ministry moves the court to recover the remaining amount. The law stipulates that the owner of a seized car must pay all fines and towing charges and only then will he be allowed to take his vehicle back. The Peninsula
