Driver cops $76,000 speeding fine

Millionaire Reima Kuisla was fined the equivalent of A$76,167 for exceeding an 80km/h speed limit by 23km/h in Finland last month.

The fine was calculated on an ability-to-pay system that operates in Finland to impose a level of fairness on speeding fine penalties.

Finnish law enables fines to be structured according to the offending driver’s income; speeders are fined a percentage of their income and the end result is that poor people pay less, rich people pay more.

And Reima Kuisla's annual income of A$9 million-plus placed him in a somewhat invidious position.

While some applaud the concept, Reima Kuisla was not so impressed: According to a report in Britain's Daily Mail, he said "Finland is impossible to live in for certain kinds of people who have high incomes and wealth. I'm considering leaving the country."

Although Kuisla is upset, his $76K or 54,000 Euro penalty is not the highest speeding fine to be imposed in Finland. In 2002 a Nokia executive was sprung for riding at 75km/h in a 50km/h zone and was fined no less than today’s equivalent of just over A$163,000.

What do you think of the Finnish speeding fine structure – would it work in Australia? Have your say in the comments section below.