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SLS owner nets R7m speeding fine

The Swiss may be renowned for their neutrality in times of conflict, yet they show little mercy when dealing with those who attempt to navigate their road network at speed.

Swiss police impounded a new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG after its Swedish owner was caught travelling at 290km/h in a 120km/h zone near Fribourg, en route from Bern to Lausanne, on Friday afternoon.

The 170km/h discrepancy is expected to balloon to a $1m (R7m) fine, which is about three times the value of the impounded SLS AMG.

In fact, the car was confiscated by police as security for the expected fine.

The speeding fine's severity is due to the Swiss federal government’s system of calculating traffic offenses on a sliding scale, directly related to the personal income of those involved.

Simply put - the more you earn, the more they take.

Swiss authorities have admitted the 37-year-old SLS AMG owner is set to become the first non-Swiss national to be prosecuted under the income-based traffic fine system.


 

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