Filenews 3 September 2025 - by Michalis Hatzivasilis
Drivers with the Department of Road Transport are upset about the issue of traffic licenses, since it was recently found that while they had paid, they are now being reported by the Traffic Police, because in the end the renewal had not been made.
The issue arose two months ago, when drivers began to complain to the Police Traffic Department, that while they had renewed their vehicle's registration license, they are now receiving an out-of-court fee of €85, because in the end the renewal did not take place.
As it was found, the TOM's registration renewal system faced a problem and some licenses were renewed normally and others were not. As we were told, there was a family that renewed the registration license for three vehicles and the two were not renewed due to the system. There is another case where three vehicles of the same family were not renewed, while the corresponding amount was paid and all three drivers were reported.
According to the explanation given to citizens who protested to the Traffic Police, while it seems that the renewal was made and the bank informed about the receipt of the amount, then after the system rejected it due to a problem, the money was returned to the citizen's account. However, no one noticed the failure of the system or was informed about this problem and the drivers were convinced that the renewal was done.
The problem becomes worse, because when a citizen renews the registration of his vehicle now, he is imposed a penalty depending on the amount of the registration certificate. Citizens went to the offices of the TOM and complained about the extra charge, but the answer they received was that "the fine is taken out by the system and we cannot do anything".
The situation becomes even more complicated, because law-abiding citizens are stopped on the streets by members of the Traffic Police because the license plate recognition systems available to patrol cars show them that the registration for this particular vehicle has not been renewed. Citizens are surprised to be informed that their license has not been renewed since 2024 and although they are convinced that they paid for the renewal, they are given an out-of-court fee of €85.
Despite the protests to the Traffic Police, citizens get the explanation that a member of the Traffic Police who perceives a violation cannot let the driver leave without reporting him, because he does not know who actually did not renew his license and who renewed it but the system did not accept it.
Added to the alarm that exists is the extra inconvenience of the citizen to claim his right, i.e. the "extinguishment" of his extrajudicial action, since it is not his fault that his vehicle does not have a registration license. Affected people are forced to contact the TOM via e-mail where they inform about the issue, then turn to the Traffic Police for the out-of-court case to be annulled and then the Traffic Police to address the Attorney General.
As we are informed, in the beginning the complaints were few, but now with the strict controls of the Traffic Police there have been dozens and the out-of-court cases are increasing. In the event that someone pays the extrajudicial fee, then the procedures to get his money back are labyrinthine and long-term.
The question that arises is why the TOM, which had been aware of the situation for over two months when the problem appeared, did not issue an announcement and call on the drivers to check whether or not the registration of their vehicles was renewed and left the vehicles to circulate without a license with all the consequences. In the event of an accident, the insurance companies would not cover the damages, while the driver would have additional consequences.
Also, after the problem was ascertained, why was there not a settlement where the license had been renewed with data but the system finally rejected it, that the out-of-court procedure should be cancelled immediately and the Attorney General must now be bombarded with hundreds of cases for their extinguishment?
Finally, why does the Traffic Police denounce the drivers when they know that this problem exists, resulting in the deletion of the extrajudicial ones?
