People have been left shocked after discovering how expensive speeding tickets can be in Finland.
TikTok creator Olivia Snake, who goes by @livontheedge online, explained in her video that speeding fines aren’t just based on the severity of your driving offence but also how much you earn.
Watch the video below:
In the post, which has been viewed over 113,000 times, Olivia begins: "Speeding in Finland can cost a fortune that's because a speeding ticket isn't just based on the severity of the offense.
"It also takes in account the driver's daily disposable income, which can lead to some insane fines for the very wealthy.
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"Like in 2002 when Anssi Vanjoki, a director at Nokia, was caught driving 75km/h in a 50km/h and was fined $103,000 (almost £82,000)."
Two decades ago, Vanjoki was caught breaking the speed limit on his Harley Davidson in the Finnish capital, Helsinki.
As traffic fines in Finland are proportional to the offender's income, he was required to pay a fine equal to 14 days of his income, which in 1999 was €14 million euros (£11.8 million).
It was deemed Finland’s most expensive speeding ticket ever. Interestingly, Finland isn’t the only country to calculate fines according to offence and income. In fact, authorities in Switzerland do the same.
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After learning about the jaw-dropping fine, Snake’s video was flooded with comments from users who commended the Finnish authorities on their traffics law and believed the measures were the 'fair'.
One commented: “That makes the most sense otherwise rich people just do what they want because a normal ticket is just pocket money.”
“That’s amazing. So the super poor won’t be charged an arm and a leg if they can’t afford it,” another wrote.
A third added: “that's the proper way to do it. otherwise, if you're rich enough...” (sic).
“Makes sense to me. Make it hurt regardless of income. If your poor it's not going to bury you but if your rich it's going to smart,” a user posted under the video.
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Another shared: “yes!!! if a fine is intended as an incentive to not do something, it’s useless if it’s not proportional to income.”
“Honestly this kinda makes sense for all crimes, a lot of my clients just don’t follow rules because they’d rather cop the fine,” a user with a career in the legal field commented.
A user echoed: “This is justice. It’s supposed to cause some discomfort so it’s a deterrent. If you earn thousands and thousands the fine is nothing to them."
Lisa McLoughlin