This new law will stop you from selling your car in South Africa

The Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act will prevent motorists from selling their cars if they have unresolved fines.

The Aarto Act is set to be rolled nationwide from 1 December 2025, beginning with the 69 largest metros and municipalities in the country.

The remaining 144 municipalities will then be added to the programme from 1 April 2026.

Importantly, the driving licence demerit point system – a key part of AARTO – will go live just over a year from now on 1 September 2026.

Once the demerit system is introduced, motorists will receive points on their driving licences for various infringements.

The number of points accumulated will vary depending on the offence, with severe actions like driving under the influence earning six points.

Infringement notices will now be served electronically via email and other digital channels, not just physical mail.

Once a person receives 15 or more points, their licence will be suspended for three months for every point over the limit.

This means that anyone who goes four points over the limit will have their licence suspended for a year.

During this time, the person cannot drive any car, and doing so will be treated as a criminal offence.

This is not the only problem that motorists will face, however, as the demerit points will also prevent them from being able to sell their car.

This is according to Michael Pashut, CEO of ChangeCars, who recently warned of the new hurdles that the Aarto Act will present.

He cautioned that Aarto will have an impact on second-hand vehicle sales in South Africa, as the traffic fines and demerit points are linked to the owner of the car, not just the person who was driving at the time.

Individuals will not be able to sell a car with unresolved Aarto infringements, making it vital for sellers to clear all outstanding fines before listing their vehicle.

This also presents a risk to buyers, who need to exercise due diligence to ensure that the car they are purchasing has no outstanding Aarto fines attached to it.

While dealerships should handle this, private sellers may be more unscrupulous, warned Pashut.

Another issue is that companies will be required to officially nominate the driver responsible for an infringement, else the business itself will be liable for the fine and demerit points.

This, in turn, may interfere with a company’s ability to sell its fleet vehicles.

Aarto rollout

The Aarto Act demerit system may seem draconian to some, but one important caveat is that the licence points are not permanent.

They are set to expire three months from the time they are allocated, which means a person will need to commit several offences in relatively short period to have their licences revoked.

That being said, anyone who has their licence suspended for a third time will lose it entirely.

These motorists will then be required to retake their learner’s and driver’s exams to earn a new card.

“While South African drivers have not exactly welcomed the idea, it is a well-tested system with several countries employing their versions,” said Pashut.

“Australia started in the 1960s, New Zealand in 1967, the UK in 1982, and France in 1992, to mention a few. A 2024 study shows that these systems have reduced overall negative outcomes related to traffic by around 21%, fatalities by 10%, and non-fatal injuries by 9%.”

Pashut noted that the act’s rollout is also likely to be delayed owing to logistical issues.

The Road Traffic Infringement Agency announced in June that it had begun the process of linking Aarto to the eNatis system and training the country’s 25,000 traffic officers, but it remains to be seen whether this process will be completed in time for the project’s launch.

“AARTO could put a real spanner in the works for unsafe drivers, from costing them their licenses to making it difficult to sell their vehicles,” said Pashut.

“Naturally, the easiest way to avoid all of these consequences is to drive responsibly. It would also be advisable to get familiar with the demerit system, and to keep an eye out for infringement notices should there be any.”