As part of a month-long campaign, road users in Ho Chi Minh City may be pulled over by traffic police officers for an administrative inspection regardless of whether or not they have committed a violation.

The traffic police division under the municipal Department of Police announced on Monday that the campaign will start on May 15 and continue until June 14.

Traffic police officers will be inspecting local vehicles to promptly detect and prevent any violations, in an effort to minimize traffic accidents and congestion as local streets have become busy again following a social distancing period due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic in April.

Until May 14, the campaign will be advertised with an informational campaign to raise awareness among citizens.

From May 15 to June 14, officers will begin examining local road users and impose fines if any violations are detected.

During this period, police officers are authorized to pull over road users, whether or not they have violated traffic rules, for an administrative inspection.

The current law states that traffic cops can only pull someone over with probable cause.

Officers will be allowed to review road users’ documents, examine their vehicles, and perform breath tests for alcohol.

Drivers will be free to go if no violation is found. On the other hand, fines will be imposed if they are discovered breaking any regulations on road safety.

Under Article 14 of Circular No. 01/2016 issued by the Ministry of Public Security, motorbike riders are required to carry along their driver’s license, vehicle registration certificate, and travel insurance for motorbike riders, also known as yellow paper insurance.

Drivers of automobiles and other four-wheel vehicles must also bring a vehicle inspection certificate, while those working for transport businesses must present any other required documents and strictly comply with regulations relating to their operations.

For motorbike riders, lacking a driver’s license is punishable by between VND800,000 (US$34) and VND1.2 million ($51), while forgetting to bring a license is punishable by VND100,000-200,000 ($4-8).

Driving without a motorbike registration certificate is punishable by a fine of VND300,000-400,000 ($12-17), or VND100,000-200,000 for forgetting to bring the paper.

Drivers who do not have yellow paper insurance or bring the certificate with them will face a fine worth VND100,000-200,000.

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