Can you lose your Danish driving licence for not clearing your windscreen?
Snow and other winter weather in Denmark can mean opaque windscreens before morning car journeys, but it’s important to clear them properly.
Drivers are obliged to ensure their windscreens are fully clear before driving. That means ice must be properly scraped off and that the inside of the window is fully demisted.
A correctly de-iced car with good visibility has a clear view through all windows, including the small triangles on side doors. Headlights and rear lights must also be free of snow and dirt.
Police can penalise drivers for driving with limited visibility due to unclear windscreens.
Fines ranging between 1,000 kroner and 2,500 kroner can be issued for the offence, depending on how badly obscured the windscreen is.
More serious infractions can also result in the driver’s licence being conditionally revoked under Danish traffic laws. That means the driving theory and practical tests must be retaken in order to stay behind the wheel.
READ ALSO: How strict are the punishments for driving offences in Denmark?
Police in the West Copenhagen district said on Tuesday this week that they had issued six such punishments to drivers after stopping seven vehicles on the way to giving a road safety talk at a local school.
The seventh driver was given the more lenient 1,000-krone fine, West Copenhagen Police said in a statement.
Two of the drivers were stopped near schools, police said.
“You are gambling with other road users’ safety if you drive around unable to see properly out of the windows. It’s the driver’s responsibility to clean the windows and we will be following up on this with more checks in the coming days,” police officer Claus Stoltenberg of West Copenhagen Police said in the statement.
“Particularly serious cases” of the offence result in conditional driving bans, Stoltenberg elaborated in comments to broadcaster TV2.
A conditional ban means you can keep your licence if you pass a theory and practical control driving test within a deadline set by the police, usually six months. The fee for the tests is currently 890 kroner.
Photo: Københavns Vestegns Politi
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Drivers are obliged to ensure their windscreens are fully clear before driving. That means ice must be properly scraped off and that the inside of the window is fully demisted.
A correctly de-iced car with good visibility has a clear view through all windows, including the small triangles on side doors. Headlights and rear lights must also be free of snow and dirt.
Police can penalise drivers for driving with limited visibility due to unclear windscreens.
Fines ranging between 1,000 kroner and 2,500 kroner can be issued for the offence, depending on how badly obscured the windscreen is.
More serious infractions can also result in the driver’s licence being conditionally revoked under Danish traffic laws. That means the driving theory and practical tests must be retaken in order to stay behind the wheel.
READ ALSO: How strict are the punishments for driving offences in Denmark?
Police in the West Copenhagen district said on Tuesday this week that they had issued six such punishments to drivers after stopping seven vehicles on the way to giving a road safety talk at a local school.
The seventh driver was given the more lenient 1,000-krone fine, West Copenhagen Police said in a statement.
Two of the drivers were stopped near schools, police said.
“You are gambling with other road users’ safety if you drive around unable to see properly out of the windows. It’s the driver’s responsibility to clean the windows and we will be following up on this with more checks in the coming days,” police officer Claus Stoltenberg of West Copenhagen Police said in the statement.
“Particularly serious cases” of the offence result in conditional driving bans, Stoltenberg elaborated in comments to broadcaster TV2.
A conditional ban means you can keep your licence if you pass a theory and practical control driving test within a deadline set by the police, usually six months. The fee for the tests is currently 890 kroner.
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