MADRID – It’s a big part of a car holiday: driving south with a fully-loaded car. Be careful not to take full loading too literally, because that can cost you dearly during a check.
An article in the Spanish General Traffic Regulations (RGC) can make your summer holiday an expensive joke when a car is overcrowded. It will cost you €200 if you put a suitcase or loose items such as groceries in the back seat. The Spanish traffic service DGT warns that crowded cars can be a danger on the road.
Endangers stability
With a fully loaded rear seat, you can violate the rules of the RGC. The cargo of a car must not “drag on the ground, fall wholly or partly or shift in a dangerous manner”. Furthermore, the load must not put a load on the car that “endangers the stability of the vehicle”.
Field of view must be clear
Even if the driver cannot move freely or is restricted in his view, he risks the same fine. “The driver of a vehicle is obliged to guarantee his own freedom of movement, to keep the field of view clear, and to have his attention continuously focused on driving. This is because he stands for his own safety, that of the passengers, and that of other road users. Therefore, the driver must be able to sit in the correct position and make sure that the passengers are seated properly and that animals or objects are properly placed or stowed so that he cannot be hindered by them”.
There is also a fine for overloading the car. If an object falls from or from the car onto the road, you can be fined €500. This is because there is an acute danger to other road users.
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