A man who was the victim of identity theft received more than €300,000 in fines related to vehicles driven by others. On December 24, 2024, he denounced the State's responsibility.
The harm is heavy for this teacher. A victim of identity theft six years ago, revealed Le Parisien, he received more than €300,000 in fines for traffic violations. However, he does not own a vehicle himself. In an investigation published in Le Monde, he points out the responsibility of the State.
400 vehicles in his name
It was a letter from the Lille prefecture that alerted this teacher living in Hauts-de-Seine. It asked him to provide proof of vehicle purchases and sales. He then realized that dozens of fines were in his name, for a total sum of 300,000 euros.
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The victim was notably the victim of an individual who set up a car buying and selling company in the North. Dozens of vehicles were registered in the victim's name every day. Also, for each violation, it was from her that the Public Treasury demanded money.
“On two occasions, my salary was seized directly. The tax authorities left me 500 euros to survive,” he told the Parisian daily.
Modest compensation
Six years after the events, the professor spoke to our colleagues at Monde to denounce the State's responsibility in this affair. The newspaper points out “gaping flaws in the vehicle registration system (SIV), a public register whose semi-privatization has opened the way to massive scams”.
The teacher believes that the person who stole his name collected his identity documents from the trash cans of real estate agencies after he had sent applications to find an apartment. As a result, the registration checks on the SIV were insufficient to detect the ongoing scam.
The victim obtained 3,000 euros in compensation by taking the State to court. The identity theft was recognized and he will no longer have to pay these fines. However, he believes that the compensation is low in relation to the legal costs incurred, not to mention his personal injury.