The first two motorists in Málaga province to be arrested under the new law regarding driving without a licence have escaped a jail sentence.
May 1st saw the implementation of the revised Penal Code which makes driving without a valid licence a criminal offence rather than an administrative one. This change gives the courts the option of imposing a prison term of between three and six months.
The first two arrests, however, did not result in a jail sentence. A judge in Marbella imposed a fine on the two defendants and ordered them to carry out community service for a period not exceeding 90 days. Both defendants had been stopped during routine police controls and both pleaded guilty to the offence.
These two cases in Málaga province followed the general national trend of not actually imposing prison sentences, despite the option being available to the courts.
The new law, which came into force on May 1st 2008, criminalises the offence of ‘driving without a licence’ and gives the police the power of arrest in such cases.
The new law applies to:
- Driving without having obtained a valid licence for the vehicle involved.
- Driving a vehicle without permission, even if they have a valid licence.
The new law does not apply to:
- Drivers who are not in possession of a valid licence because they have lost all their licence points.
- Drivers who have a valid licence but it is not in their possession at the time of being stopped.
- Drivers whose licence has expired.
- Drivers using a car licence to drive a motorbike and vice versa.
- Drivers with licences from other EU countries