Mobility Scooters, off the sidewalks and at a maximum of 25 km / h
Regulations The DGT opens the door to compulsory insurance for scooters
The special prosecutor for Road Safety, Bartolomé Vargas, explained that the Prosecutor's Office "has sent an instruction this morning to try to get users of personal mobility vehicles (VMP) to comply with the law".
To do this, he asks the local police and prosecutors for
more alcohol and drug controls in the cities of the users of these vehicles,
which, in addition, "we are going to include
articles 379 and following of the Penal Code
as crimes
.
That is, the crimes that a motor vehicle driver commits when driving under the influence of psychotropic drugs.
"It is necessary and good for citizens to know that these controls are being carried out," said
Vargas.
And he recalled that "when the accident caused by the bicycle or the VMP occurs, a possible crime of involuntary manslaughter
can
be committed that
can carry a penalty of 1 to 9 years in prison
depending on the severity of the accident"
Vargas was resounding when explaining that "there are many bicycles and scooters, which are motor vehicles. It is good for sustainability but the regulations that generate uncertainty among citizens are being breached. There is no sustainability if road regulations are not respected. Cyclists they skip traffic lights or someone riding a VMP on the sidewalk can run over someone, causing a disturbance in coexistence. "
For this reason, "we have sent an instruction to all urban police in the country to
monitor that within the VMP there are mopeds that are not homologated like the latter, and they are a fraud of the law
because they evade the driving license," said Vargas.
The Special Prosecutor for Road Safety did not avoid talking about cyclists:
"The police must more rigorously supervise cyclists,
immobilization, removal and deposit of their bicycle: it will not be necessary for them to wait for the offending crime to occur."
In this way, said vehicles can be requisitioned before a run over occurs.
Obligatory insurance
"There is a clear irresponsibility of cyclists and VMP to go without insurance
. They cause damage for which they cannot respond. Let's imagine a spinal injury, we are talking about an expense of 2 million that the victim pays. The Prosecutor's Office will take into account that in terms of penalties, "said Vargas.
Compulsory insurance will be studied for those VMP that are not approved and that are true mopeds
.
Ultimately, it is about promoting coverage for victims.
"We are having contacts with insurers, we are looking for formulas for legal coverage. It would be desirable if all these vehicles were insured," according to the Special Prosecutor for Road Safety.
Vargas was
very critical of the indiscriminate marketing of these vehicles in shopping centers.
"We address the indiscriminate marketing of unapproved mopeds, bicycles and unapproved VMPs. They are sold without homologation either by industry or by consumption."
"Here the guarantee of the risks that the marketed good can produce is included. If the legislation protects
especially the most vulnerable, children
, it cannot be that a scooter is sold for a child like a soccer ball. It is not uncommon to see to parents with children who are at serious risk for a child who is driving the scooter. Not only in commercialization but also on public roads. We are going to act in the areas so that the norm is complied with. "
Vargas affirmed that the administrative infractions in the sales will be investigated.
"
Not only in physical surfaces but also in sales over the internet."
And not only the distribution companies but also the rental companies.
"Companies have to submit to the legislation, including the apps through which VMP can be reserved.
We point out the possibility of the company that rents or transfers it may be a subsidiary civil liability as occurs when it is the City Council that rents the bicycle or the scooter, "Vargas said.
All this is explained without having specific figures, but it is due to the progressive increase in violations and abuses of this type of vehicle in large cities.
According to Vargas, the strategy will also continue to revolve around education.
"If the user has taken a Road Safety course before committing an outrage in VMP, it will be taken into account as a mitigating factor at the time of the sentence."
Regarding the mandatory nature of the
helmet
, the Prosecutor's Office is in favor of any measure that protects the vulnerable.
But on the subject, Vargas commented that
"we respect the parliamentary processing of the new regulation"
of circulation in which this obligation will be introduced.
At the end of the year, a study will be presented on the increase in the number of VMPs and the claims that it entails.
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