Yes, frequently committing traffic offences – alcohol violations, speeding, dangerous traffic behaviour – is associated with a higher risk of crashes. Alcohol offenders who are apprehended twice or more often have a much higher risk of crashes than non-offenders [2]. Dutch research established that vehicles (licences) with multiple traffic fines (dealt with by the Central Fine Collection Agency (CJIB) within a certain period of time have a strongly increased risk of crashes compared with vehicles/licences with just a few traffic fines (see Figure 2) [3]. Only 5% of all fined vehicles (left in the picture) form the group of vehicles with four or more traffic fines within a period of five years, but they are involved in more than a quarter (27%) of all registered crashes in that period (right in the picture). The vehicles with most (11-20) traffic fines constitute as little as 0.1% of all fined vehicles, but they are involved in more than 4% of all crashes. These great differences in crash involvement cannot be explained by differences in distances travelled and therefore indicate a higher risk of crashes.
Figure 2 indicates the relationship between fines and crashes for vehicles, most of the offences being registered on vehicle licence. It is not certain who drove the vehicle at that specific time. SWOV-researchers have therefore called for a more far-reaching approach to vehicle owners of vehicles with multiple fines [4].
