Van driver fined €368 for littering on French road

A driver on a French road has been required to pay €368 after being caught on film throwing fast food packaging out of his van window.

Published Modified

The driver was fined €68 for the misdemeanour, which was filmed by a CCTV camera in Laigneville, Oise (Hauts-de-France).

Local police arrived at the scene to administer the fine - but the driver has actually been forced to pay €368 in total, as €300 was later billed to him for the litter clean-up.

This was a deliberate move from the local council in Laigneville, which has decided to make offenders pay should any technical or clean-up services be required as a result of their actions.

Christophe Dietrich, mayor of Laigneville - a town of more than 4,400 inhabitants - has defended the high cost of these services.

Speaking on the commune Facebook page, he said: “For four years, with my municipal team, we have been fighting against all public littering of any kind.”

Mr Dietrich condemned the van driver’s actions as “total carelessness”, and said: “Unfortunately, we can see that today, among a small amount of people, it is only when you hit them in their wallet that it starts to have an impact.

"We will not be minions to these people.”

Stay informed:
Sign up to our free weekly e-newsletter
Subscribe to access all our online articles and receive our printed monthly newspaper The Connexion at your home. News analysis, features and practical help for English-speakers in France