Strasbourg, 16/02/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 14 February the European Parliament adopted a resolution demanding that the Greek authorities immediately stop confiscations of cars which do not conform with EU legislation. Over the last few years, in fact, a large number of petitions and official complaints have been submitted on this subject, such that the Parliament - without waiting for the outcome of the legal proceedings in the Court of Justice brought by the Commission against Greece on 26 March 2004 - decided to bring the matter before the plenary session.
The petitioners state that the Greek customs authorities considered that their vehicles, which were registered abroad, were illegally imported and used in Greece, and therefore confiscated them. This has happened on several occasions because, according to MEPs, “a very substantial number of vehicles have been seized, confiscated and sold at auction”. The Community legislation which is applicable in such situations is directive 83/182/EEC which grants an exemption, where certain conditions are fulfilled, for the temporary use of a vehicle in a Member State other than that where it is registered. This exemption applies for a period which can be continuous or otherwise, not exceeding six months in a twelve month period. Apparently, all the petitioners fulfilled the necessary conditions for such an exemption; nonetheless, the Greek customs authorities accused them of fraud or attempted tax fraud. In addition to this, fines “of astronomical proportions” - representing up to several times the purchase price of the vehicle in the first place - were imposed on the petitioners. In the view of the Parliament, such sanctions “impede the free movement of goods and persons”. The Greek customs authorities should have taken account of the good faith of the alleged offenders when they said that they were resident in another Member State. On that subject, in its legal proceedings against Greece, the Commission put forward, among others, the argument that determining “normal residency” of the driver was a prerequisite for the implementation of sanctions. MEPs believe that the petitioners have been caused harm and have the right to be “properly compensated”. If the Greek authorities do not take appropriate measures to address the situation, the European Commission will pursue its legal case against Greece.