Tougher anti-hoon laws for Victoria
Victoria's tough anti-hoon laws are about to get tougher with first offenders set to lose their car for 30 days -- up from 48 hoursVictorian Transport Minister, Terry Mulder, has outlined new penalties for hoon drivers. The new laws will potentially see multiple offenders losing their cars permanently. The new regulations also categorise overloading as a hoon offence.
The full list of hoon offences in Victoria consist of the following: extreme speeding; street racing; burnouts or spinning wheels; repeated driving while disqualified
and overloading or overcrowding a car.
According to Victoria Police statistics, the Greater Bendigo area has the highest concentration of hoons, followed by Geelong and Narre Warren, with Dandenong, Melton and Frankston competing for fourth place.
From July 1 this year, first time hoon offenders will have their car seized and impounded for 30 days, instead of 48 hours, while repeat offenders will have their cars confiscated indefinitely.
If a driver offends for a second time and is found doing more than 70km/h over the limit, their car will be confiscated.
Repeat offenders will also face having their vehicle seized, crushed, stripped of parts or even handed over to the banks if still being financed under some circumstances. When the laws are enacted from July 1, a second hoon offence can be recorded up to six years after the first offence - previously a three year cooling off period.
Another change to the hoon legislation will soon see offenders having to undergo compulsory driver education courses.
The addition of 'overloading' to the list of the hoon behaviour punishable by law is a result of Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu's reaction to a recent incident that saw a learner driver pulled over with nine teens crammed into the car.
"It's unbelievable in this day and age that someone could behave like that," Baillieu told a Melbourne newspaper.
"In addition to delivering our commitments, we will be introducing new laws to ban overloading of cars. These new laws show that we are listening to the community and will deliver on our commitments to make our roads safer."
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