The long-awaited phase 2 of AARTO has been rolled out in 62 municipalities in the Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, North-West and Northen Cape provinces. The rest are set to follow during Phase 3 of the roll-out. What is important to remember is that drivers will still be held liable in terms of AARTO for traffic violations committed within municipalities that have implemented AARTO, irrespective of where they reside.

The AARTO legislation and processes are aimed at moving away from reliance on a judicial procedure to enforce payment of fines as the courts are overloaded, which ultimately results in less drivers paying their fines.

How does it work?

The process regarding less serious traffic violations such as failure to renew a license disc, skipping a red light, exceeding the speed limit by less than 40km/h and failure to wear a seat belt will change dramatically. These violations will no longer be dealt with through the criminal prosecution system, but administratively. The more serious offences will still be dealt with in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Act.

The below administrative process will now apply to less serious offences:

• An infringement notice will be sent electronically to the violator, accompanied by the relevant fine. Electronic service will be viewed as sufficient and no proof of receipt is required. The offender will then be provided with 32 days to pay the relevant fine. Should the offender pay the fine within the 32 days, a 50% discount will apply.
• Should the offender fail to pay the fine within 32 days, a curtesy notice / letter will be sent to the offender. The 50% discount will be forfeited by this stage.
• Should the offender still fail to pay the fine within 32 days after receipt of the curtsey letter, the offender will be blocked on the eNatis system. This will ultimately result in the offender being unable to renew his/her driver’s license or motor vehicle license disc until the relevant fine is paid.

Failure to pay fines timeously could accordingly have far reaching consequences on drivers and vehicle owners.

The implications of phase 2 on employers:

The regulations make provision for cases where a vehicle was driven by a driver other than the owner of the vehicle at the time of the infringement. Thus, in the event of a violation occurring for a company that owns vehicles driven by employees, there is a procedure that can be followed:

• Upon receipt of the infringement notice and fine, the employer must complete an AARTO 07 form within 32 days, declaring that the driver of the vehicle is not the owner of said vehicle. The actual driver must be identified and a copy of his/her identification document must be supplied.
• RTIA will acknowledge receipt hereof within 14 days and if accepted, the infringement notice will be issued to the driver of the vehicle who will have to pay the fine within 32 days as explained earlier.

It is thus essential that employers ensure that they have the necessary processes and procedures in place to ensure that they are not held liable for infringements incurred whilst employees are driving company-owned vehicles.

In this regard the below is advised:

• Implement strict policies regarding the reporting of traffic violations – employees must advise the employer the moment they become aware of a potential traffic violation. Strict disciplinary measures must be put in place in the event of employees failing to inform.
• Ensure that contact information linked to the vehicle registration is current and correct as to ensure that the company is informed as soon as possible after the infringement had been committed.
• Nominate an employee as custodian of the AARTO process – this employee must inform the employer once an infringement notice is issued and must ensure that the AARTO 07 documentation is submitted timeously. The custodian must follow up in the event that no confirmation of receipt is received from RTIA and ensure that the process is completed.
• Maintain a daily record of which employee was allocated to each vehicle.
• Keep record of the date and time of allocation and return.
• Maintain up-to-date record of every authorised driver (ID, driver’s licence, contact details, residential address, etc.).
• Ensure that each driver signs an agreement confirming that they are personally responsible for traffic infringements committed while driving company vehicles.
• Provide AARTO training to employees driving company vehicles.

The demerit point system:

The demerit system will likely form part of phase 4, which is anticipated to be rolled-out in 2027. In terms of this system, demerit points will be issued against an individual’s licence based on the seriousness of the traffic infringement.

All drivers start with 0 points. An offence will result in points being issued on the basis of the seriousness of the infringement and can range between 1 – 6. The points will still be accompanied by a monetary fine. Once a driver exceeds 15 points, his/her driver’s license is automatically suspended for three months in respect of each point over 15.

A licence may only be suspended twice. By the time that a driver accumulates enough points to have it suspended a third time, the license will automatically be cancelled. The driver will then have to re-apply for a learner’s licence and driver’s licence.

Once this is rolled out, employers will have to put further measures in place to ensure that all employees driving company vehicles have valid driver’s licences. It is advised that an individual be nominated to establish the validity of all employee licences regularly and that strict disciplinary measures be put in place in the event of an employee failing to inform the employer of the suspension of his/her licence or cancellation thereof.

Article written by Carla Theron