Dishonest drivers are taking to social media to buy and sell demerit points, posting in marketplaces and designated group pages and risking fines up to $11,000 in states like NSW.
There are currently several demerit point exchange pages on Facebook, some with more than 1000 members.
Sellers generally post how many points they need to be taken and can list how much they are willing to pay.
Users interested in taking the points for compensation will then privately message or publicly reply to the post, commonly stoking interest from multiple people looking to make a quick buck.
Facebook’s ‘Trade Your Demerit Points for $$$’ has 613 members, NSW-based ‘Eastern suburbs demerit point buy/sell’ has 1200 members, and ‘buy sell demerit points VIC’ has 181 members.
“Looking for someone who can help me out with one demerit point,” one user posted on Saturday.
“I need someone to take four demerit points, comment or inbox me how much, and we can work something out,” another said on the same day.
“No time (wasters) I’ve got points available for sale … you pay for points and fine,” another person posted.
Some sellers are on international driving licences and are not given points for driving infringements, meaning they can only be fined.
Once they pay the fine in the place of the real driver then there is no record of the offence.
Authorities are warning desperate drivers of the even heftier penalties that apply should they be found falsely nominating another person for demerit point penalties, which can reach in excess of $10,000 in some states and territories if convicted in court.
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