Fined 60 euro for trying to park anonymously

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This morning Privacy First, a foundation committed to preserving and promoting the right to privacy, is in court in Amsterdam over having to enter one’s license plate number when parking on the city’s streets.

Bas Filippini, who when parking in Amsterdam enters the license plate number ‘NOWAY’ (see film linked to the source), says the problem is two-fold: 1) a person in Amsterdam now has no choice but to enter their license plate number and 2) people cannot pay with cash, which both breach the right to privacy and anonymity, never mind being a pain for tourists or other visitors who don’t have the right bank card or mobile phone.

Filippini is in court because of a 60 euro fine he got for not entering his license plate number. According to Privacy First, every free citizen has the right to privacy in the sense of anonymity in public spaces, including parking one’s car, a right stated by Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (PDF).

We’ve been parking cars on the streets in Amsterdam for decades without the city knowing anything about our cars, and continue to gleefully do so across the country. Article 8 says unless matters such as, “national security, public safety or the economic wellbeing of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others” come into play, which I cannot possible imagine they do.

UPDATE: The verdict is due 23 December 2014. Postponed for six weeks.

UPDATE No. 2: Verdict out: “The council considers that using the wrong number plate is the same as not paying but the court disagreed. Not finding a payment corresponding to a real number plate could be evidence that no payment was made but the person parking can demonstrate they did pay in a variety of ways”.

(Link: www.telegraaf.nl)

2 Comments »

  1. Sarah says:

    Rotterdam also now requires you to fill in your license plate number and pay with a credit or debit card. But at least it’s a step up from the chipknip only machines that previously dominated the city. :/

  2. Orangemaster says:

    Chipknip died (IMHO it sucked) and impeded non-Dutch residents from parking on the street. However, you can park anonymously (= normally) in most of the country, so being forced to enter your car details in certain cities is odd. When Nijmegen forced its citizens to use their mobiles to pay for parking, the Germans got upset and the city reversed its system.

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