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Failure to pay a toll road toll within the allotted time limit is not, in certain situations, grounds for charging a driver a fine. This is the conclusion reached by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. In a number of cases, this period is automatically extended by several days by law, the judges clarified. When motorists can get additional time to pay for the toll road, "Izvestia" found out.

Passed? Pay!

In the fall of 2022, a truck belonging to a transport company drove on one of the toll roads (which one, in the case materials is not specified), on which the payment system "free flow". These are the M12 "Vostok" highway , the Central Ring Road, as well as the Moscow High Speed Diameter (MSD) and Bagration Passage in the capital. According to the law, in this case it is necessary to pay the toll within five days, and a fine is due for violation. However, the law stipulates that if the toll arrears are paid within 20 days from the date of assessment of the fine, the penalty is automatically canceled.

трасса
Photo: RIA Novosti/Nafis Sirazetdinov

The logistics company did not pay the toll for its truck within five days and received a notice of a fine of 5 thousand rubles. As it follows from the case file, the 20-day legal deadline expired on Sunday, November 13, 2022, and the company eventually paid the debt to the toll road operator, but did so only the next day, Monday, November 14, 2022. In November 2023, the transportation company received a notice of enforcement proceedings over an unpaid fine from a year ago.

The firm's lawyers asked the court to release it from administrative liability and terminate the enforcement proceedings. They referred to the provisions of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, according to which, if the end of the term for payment of the fine falls on a weekend or holiday, the last day of the term is the first working day following it. Thus, according to the company's lawyers, the firm had met the legal deadline for debt repayment.

деньги
Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

However, the arbitration courts, as well as the court of appeal did not find grounds to exempt the plaintiff company from administrative responsibility. Therefore, its representatives filed a complaint with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

Will you prolong it?

Having considered the case materials, the judicial board for economic disputes of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognized the conclusions of lower instances as unlawful. The judges of the Supreme Court considered that their colleagues "committed significant violations of the norms of substantive and procedural law that affected the outcome of the case". In particular, the requirements of part 3 of Article 4.8 of the CAO RF, according to which "the possibility of postponing the end of the term to the first working day following a non-working day" was not taken into account.

"Since the courts did not apply the norms of substantive law to be applied to the arisen legal relations, which entailed incomplete establishment of legally significant circumstances subject to verification, the conclusion of the courts on the lack of grounds for exemption from the named administrative responsibility is premature", - stated in the definition of the judicial board for economic disputes of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

суд
Photo: Izvestia/Eduard Kornienko

As a result, the Supreme Court decided to cancel the decisions of lower instances, sending the case for a new consideration, in which "the court should take into account the above, comprehensively and fully investigate the available evidence in the case in their totality, correctly applying the norms of substantive and procedural law, to make a lawful and justified decision".

Taking into account the postponements

The Supreme Court made an adequate and reasoned decision, believes Sergei Radko, lawyer of the Freedom of Choice movement. In this case, the lower courts did not take into account the requirements of the general part of the CAO, and as a result, a decision was made that does not comply with the law, says the lawyer.

- There was indeed some uncertainty in the legislation regarding the calculation of terms for cases on administrative offenses. In 2023 it was eliminated, and in Art. 4.8 of the CAO there is a new part 3.1, according to which, if the end of the term, calculated by days, falls on a non-working day, the last day of the term is considered the first working day following it. Thus, the company had time to pay for the toll road within the allotted time frame, which means that the fine should be canceled," Sergey Radko told Izvestia.

проезд
Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexei Kudenko

Usually we are talking about 1-2 additional days, but if because of holidays are introduced postponement of weekends and holidays, then the "bonus" becomes longer, especially during the New Year vacations, the lawyer added. He emphasized that this decision of the Supreme Court, despite the fact that it involves a legal entity and arbitration courts, can also be used as an argument by ordinary motorists who find themselves in a similar situation.

- In this case, the essence of the issue is clarification of the general part of the CAO, so it does not matter on whose behalf the complaint was filed and what court considered the case initially," he explained.

Deadlines are important

Motorists, as a rule, are more concerned about the cost of traveling on a toll road than the terms within which they can pay the toll and repay the debt, says Igor Morzharetto, a member of the Presidium of the Public Council of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. However, the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation shows that the terms are also important, he notes.

- Not everyone is aware of the possibility fixed in the law to "add" weekends and holidays, both when paying for the road toll, where the free flow system works, and when automatically canceling the fine in case of debt repayment, - said the expert.

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