[quote=“hsinhai78”][quote=“dan2006”]My IDP says it is good for a year, and there is no mention of getting any stupid endorsements at the DMV.
I think it is a spurious regulation that you need to endorse it as it is not mentioned on the IDP at all, and there is no special star with restrictions showing for Taiwan on the IDP itself.
And I have been stopped by cops before and have never been asked for my license. But again YMMV.[/quote]
What your IDP says is quite irrelevant to the domestic law of the ROC as only the law of the country where you want to drive matters and not the law of IDP issuing country. In the eyes of the government in Taiwan your IDP is no longer valid after 30 days since your last entry unless you have received an endorsement from the DMV. The endorsement is nothing more than a piece of paper that contains your personal information in Chinese and the seal of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications that will be affixed to your IDP. You can get it at the 2nd floor of the Shilin DMV.
If police did not ask for your licence you were lucky, next time they stop you be prepared for the possibility of being fined 6,000 NT$.
AFAIK it will just be another 6,000 NT$. It’s merely and administrative fine like not paying your parking ticket. If you leave the fine unpaid it can lead to steep increases. Also consider that the DMV will no longer offer you any service as long as the fines are not all paid.
Doesn’t seem to be much of a deterrent though to stop people driving unlicensed and doesn’t your insurance become void if you have no license? if you could get insurance in the first place without a license.
Insurance is tied to the registered owner and believe it or not the compulsory third party insurance every vehicle needs to be registered in the first place covers those who crash without a licence. Good for the victim of flip-flops-shorts-longnose-teacher-no-licence-dude, but admittedly not really a deterrent.
Exactly, at least in Taiwan that is the case. You would not believe how many local do not have proper licenses.[/quote]
Funny you should say that but it doesn’t surprise me in the slightest, however im not here to criticise after years of getting ripped off being a motorist in Britain i find things refreshingly different over here and much more relaxed.
I provided the link as an example of a website spreading that incorrect rumour.
The reason for a civil procedure in Taiwan is not punishment (as in the US, ref. punitive damages) but purely the compensation for damages sustained from the wrongful behaviour of another driver.
What matters is entirely whether you or the other party broke the rules or not. Whether you had a license or not is entirely irrelevant to this. The fact that you did not have a license does not constitute recklessness or negligence either. In a civil procedure you win absolutely nothing if the other person was not licensed, likewise your lack of a license does not give the other party any ammo as you put it.
The worst that can happen when it comes to driving without a license is an administrative fine of 6,000 NT$ and that’s it.
Why people who act naively around the police should be careful is because the opposing party or a police officer with a bias might coerce them into signing an admission of guilt citing their lack of a license. Don’t let anyone coerce you into signing something. This also applies to the Foreign Affairs Police. You might think you make it easier for the nice officers, but that may not be in your interest. Only sign a document at the scene of an accident or at the police station if you are fully aware of its contents. Unless you were drunk or intentionally injured people you will not face any consequences that could endanger your immigration status.[/quote]
If you are in a civil case w/o video proof (no dashboard cameras on scooters) of the accident then it’s a ‘your word vs his word’ argument and being an unlicensed foreigner is definitely going to help their case.