How fast you can drive without getting fined in South Africa

You can drive 10km/h above the speed limit in South Africa without getting fined.

The so-called tolerance is meant to accommodate small calibration errors in vehicle speedometers.

There are dozens upon dozens of automakers and automotive suppliers out there, many of which uses varying techniques and equipment to calibrate their vehicles’ speedometers, which inevitably leads to discrepancies.

This is mainly why certain GPS devices will sometimes say you’re going slower, or faster, than the car’s built-in speedometer.

Thus, to avoid prosecuting persons who marginally exceed the speed limit and clogging up the legal system, the authorities incorporated a “tolerance” of 10km/h into the fine structure.

According to the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act, these are the fines and demerit points you’ll receive when caught speeding:

It should be noted, however, that the grace does not apply to average speed-over-distance cameras, as these systems are more accurate in determining the true speed a vehicle was driving than a momentary snapshot taken by a roadside camera.

Different types of speeding fines

There are two different types of traffic fines in South Africa which depend on the manner in which the infringement was recorded.

The first is a Section 56 notice, which is issued by a law enforcement officer and usually involves an incident that took place while the vehicle was moving.

The notice includes a fine amount which you’ll have 30 days to pay, as well as a court date that usually falls within four months for which attendance is mandatory.

The other is a Section 341 notice which is sent to an infringer via post.

This is for violations caught on a traffic camera or as a traffic ticket (pink slip) when the driver is not present, such as for an expired licence disc, parking in a loading zone, or parking on a red demarcated lane.

This notice does not have a court date but still gives the motorist 30 days to pay the fine before a notice of summons is issued, after which they’ll get a further 30 days to pay before a summons with a court date is sent.

Focusing on speeding fines, there are two different versions of these as well.

The first is an “Admission of Guilt” fine which is administered if you are caught between 10-40km/h over the limit.

It imposes a certain monetary penalty and, depending on where you were caught, demerit points on your licence, as detailed in the table above.

The second is a “Non-Admission of Guilt” (NAG) fine which is issued if you were driving in excess of 40km/h.

In this scenario, the fine amount will not be included in the infringement notice.

Instead, a public prosecutor will give you the amount on the day of your trial and you will pay the fine at the court or, depending on the offense and the prosecutor’s decision, you could face a prison sentence.