In Paris, autumn isn't just about the flamboyant colors of fallen leaves in the parks. These leaves are sometimes found... on license plates! Since 2018, enforcement cars equipped with the LAPI (Automatic License Plate Recognition) system have been crisscrossing the capital, scanning up to 1,500 plates per hour. Their mission: to check that drivers, both cars and scooters, have paid for their parking.
Tricks to avoid fines
But some refuse to go to the parking meter and are doubling their creativity to jam the cameras. Some stick dead leaves on their license plates! But only in autumn, since dead leaves are in season there... A short-lived trick that speaks volumes about the ingenuity of fraudsters, as Le Parisien notes. And this natural technique is far from marginal, according to the testimonies multiplying on social networks.
For the more forward-thinking, it's not necessary to wait for the leaves to fall. Parisian resourcefulness takes all possible forms: bits of adhesive tape, towels, pieces of cardboard, or even tarps to completely cover scooters and cars. One biker confesses online: "I've had my scooter covered for two weeks, license plate included, and not a single fine." According to him, it's a response to the "excessive" cost of parking in the capital.
The range of techniques also extends to products sold online, such as sprays that are supposed to make license plates illegible. Their effectiveness, however, seems mixed, if we are to believe the videos of disappointed users. With these methods, the gamble is risky: a hidden license plate, if spotted, exposes the offender to a fine of 135 euros.
David Belliard, deputy mayor of Paris in charge of transport, remains firm on the issue. When the municipal police notice this type of fraud, the national police are notified, he says. Around ten such offenses are reported every day in Paris, a figure that he says is still marginal.
Despite the humor these schemes can inspire, the game is not always worth the candle. Between the fine and the post-parking penalty, the bill can quickly mount up. However, the creativity of the fraudsters shows once again that in Paris, imagination has no limits... especially when it comes to avoiding a ticket!
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