Page 52 - DIPLOMATIC PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES IN FINLAND

According to the Act on Parking Fines, the driver of the vehicle which has been parked illegally has the primary responsibility for the parking fine. Secondary responsibility falls on the owner of the vehicle unless the owner shows probable that he/she is not responsible for the illegal parking. In case the driver of a vehicle enjoys immunity from the administrative jurisdiction of Finland, he/she may invoke immunity. A driver of a mission who is a Finnish national or has a permanent residence in Finland, is, as a rule, liable for any parking fines he/she receives while driving an official vehicle of the mission.
The local parking control administration regularly provides the Ministry for Foreign Affairs with reports on the parking fines imposed on the members of missions. The Protocol Services will contact the missions whose members have repeatedly neglected to respect the parking regulations and seek to resolve the situation in a spirit of cooperation.
If the driver of a vehicle considers the parking fine unjustified, he/she can file a parking fine appeal with the Customer Service of the Public Works Department within 30 days of the receipt of the fine. The appeal may be submitted in person, by post, by e-mail (pysakointi@hel.fi) or by fax (310 39001). The appeal should be submitted directly to the Public Works Department. In case a person wishes to invoke immunity from the administrative jurisdiction of Finland this should be informed preferably directly to the Public Works Department.
A web form for the appeal is available on the web site of the Public Works Department at www.hel.fi (please choose English → Maps and Transport →Parking → Payment methods and parking fine).
2.5.2 Police Traffic Control
Every driver is obliged to pull over if requested to do so by a policeman and to present the registration documents of the vehicle and the identity card issued by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The police will return the documents after verification.
The police authorities use automatic traffic control cameras for traffic control. These cameras record speeding of vehicles. The police authorities send notices of vehicles with CD and C registration plates to the Protocol Services. The Protocol Services will forward these notices to the relevant missions together with a form for a reply. The
52