A Swiss millionaire was fined $100,000 for driving too close to another car. The events led the Swiss Supreme Court to weigh in on the controversial decision.
The Swiss Supreme Court fined a millionaire driver $100,000 for driving alongside another vehicle on a highway in March 2024. Many people disagreed with the Court’s controversial decision, and the Court commented on the case.
The driver was caught by the police driving too closely to the vehicle in front. The footage analyzed showed that he was “tailgating.”
To impose the fine, the Swiss Supreme Court calculated the taxable income of the defendant, a businessman from the canton of Aargau, who earns over $1.7 million annually. The federal court stated that it was not an “arbitrary” decision.
The convicted driver appealed the decision. He was also ordered to cover court costs of about $14,500.
Reddit users were shocked by the fine amount. Many pointed out that in the US, a similar infraction would cost between $100 and $300.
“I mean, a $100K fine for a taxable income of $1.6 million is like a $3,125 fine for someone making $50,000,” one user remarked.
“When you make $50,000, that $3,100 is a significant amount because you have little to no financial margin. When you make $1.6 million per year, you have a lot of financial flexibility,” pointed out another user.
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