A major sweep targeting uninsured vehicles, unpaid road taxes, and missed technical inspections (KTEO) has identified around 450,000 vehicle owners who will begin receiving fines after the summer holidays, starting from late August to early September.

The first major electronic cross-check of vehicle data was carried out by the Ministry of Transport, the General Secretariat for Information Systems, the Traffic Police, KTEO centers, and insurance companies. The results reflect the true extent of the problem for the first half of the year.

Key Findings:

• Over 300,000 vehicles are on the road without valid insurance.
• More than 150,000 vehicles have not paid their road tax.
• A similar number are estimated to have skipped mandatory KTEO inspections. Fines in these cases can reach up to €400, issued by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE).
• Some vehicles registered as “off-road” are actually being used illegally, despite their declared immobility status.

The Paradox:

Authorities noted an odd pattern:

• Many uninsured vehicles had paid road tax, implying they are actively in use.
• Conversely, others had insurance but skipped paying their road tax.
  This contradiction points to the need for a thorough clean-up of the national vehicle registry.

How the Checks Work:

The cross-checks involve matching vehicle data from various national registries. Fines will now be issued semiannually and automatically via the centralized government systems.

Penalties:

• €250 to €1,000 for uninsured vehicles
• €400 or more for skipped KTEO inspections
• Double the road tax, plus additional surcharges, for those who haven’t paid

Non-Compliance:

Those who fail to comply within three months of receiving the fine will face re-inspections and harsher penalties.

Meeting with the Government:

The issue of uninsured vehicles dominated a recent meeting between the Athens Chamber of Tradesmen, led by President Giannis Chatzitheodosiou, and the Minister of Digital Governance, Dimitris Papastergiou.
Chatzitheodosiou emphasized that although a law requiring cross-checks and fines has existed for years, implementation has been lacking.
The minister confirmed that major groundwork has been done, and a sharp drop in uninsured vehicles is expected soon.

Warning for Off-Road Declarations:

Special caution is advised for those who have declared their vehicles as immobile.
If caught driving, fines can reach €10,000.

Surveillance Cameras:

Out of 1,388 surveillance cameras installed across key roadways:

• 1,000 cameras are capable of identifying driver faces.
• Data is automatically cross-checked with records from the Ministries of Infrastructure and Transport and AADE.
• Fines are issued instantly and sent electronically.