Parliament approves demerit point system for drivers

The Georgian Parliament has approved traffic security legislation changes which will see a demerit points system be introduced in the country from July 1.

The amendments were approved on their third hearing with 89 votes in favour and none against today.

"The new law will come into force on July 1. This is the date when the demerit points system will be empowered and before this we will explain our citizens how this system works”, said Deputy Interior Minister Shalva Khutsishvili.

"We will use this period to let everyone know what traffic violations reduce how many points and how citizens can check how many points they left”.

The demerit points system – in place in a high number of other countries – needs to be explained by the Ministry as it is a new concept in Georgia.

Under the new system, essentially drivers are each year given 100 points, which will be monitored on their license. Points will be deducted each time a driver commits a traffic infringement. If a driver loses all their points, their license will be confiscated and the driver must sit another driving test to reinstate their license. Meanwhile at the beginning of each year all points will be reinstated.

The Interior Ministry first initiated the introduction of such a system back in 2015. It aims to make driving on Georgian roads safer.