Malaysia plans to seize assets and impose extra jail terms on drunk or drug-impaired drivers who fail to compensate road crash victims’ families
KUALA LUMPUR: The government is formulating a mechanism to seize assets and impose additional jail terms on drivers under the influence of alcohol or drugs who fail to pay compensation to victims or the families of those killed in road crashes.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the measures were intended to ensure that compensation orders under amendments to the Road Transport Act 1987 (Act 333) would provide meaningful recourse for affected families, particularly when offenders claim they cannot afford to pay.
“Under existing provisions in other laws, if an offender is unable to pay compensation, a heavier fine or an additional prison sentence may be imposed.
“We are also looking into whether the offender’s assets can be seized to ensure that compensation is actually paid to the next of kin,” Loke said during a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
He was answering a supplementary question from Datuk Ahmad Saad @ Yahaya (PN-Pokok Sena) on how the families of victims would be protected if an offender responsible for a fatal road crash lacked the financial means to pay compensation.
Earlier, in response to Ahmad’s original question on amending Act 333 to provide a legal basis for awarding compensation to the families of victims killed by drunk drivers, Loke said the Transport Ministry planned to table the amendments in Parliament early next year.
On further preventive measures, Loke said the government would also revamp the demerit points system, which he described as ineffective in its current form because points are deducted only after offenders settle their traffic summonses, thereby weakening its deterrent effect.