DRIVERS COMMITTING three serious driving offences in a five year period face a two-year driving ban under tough new police rules.
They will then only be able to get back behind the wheel after taking a new driving exam, according to a Portuguese Home Office source.
Home Office Minister Rui Pereira said that the confiscation of driving licences from those breaking the law did not imply they would be prohibited from driving forever.
“The annulment of the licence isn’t for good,” the minister said, adding that the driver could only obtain a renewed licence after taking a new driving test which could be only taken two years after the date in which the original ban was given.
The government is introducing a new Highway Code whereby if a driver commits three serious infractions or five lesser ones within five years, he or she could see their licence suspended.
According to the Secretary of State for Civil Protection, José Miguel Medeiros, the current process for driving licence bans under the present Highway Code “isn’t working” given that in the past three years only nine motorists have had their licences taken away.
The Minister said that there needed to be a period of rehabilitation before punished motorists could be allowed to drive again.
The Highway Code considers stopping on motorways or places with poor visibility, parking on highways at night, dazzling other motorists with headlights, driving on the hard shoulder and ignoring signals to stop, such as red traffic lights, all as serious infractions.
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