The first weekend of summer acted as a wake up call to a few owners of mopeds, scoters and motorbikes as Torrevieja’s Local Police force swung into action checking out the legality of bikes and their riders during two days of roadside checks. The Police set up different checkpoints throughout the city to verify that the documentation (ITV, SOA, Certificates, Driving Licenses and Permits) of about 60 drivers and their respective motorcycles and mopeds was correct. As a result, six bikes were impounded as their ITV (Technical Inspection) had expired, four owners ticketed for lack of SOA (Compulsory Insurance) two more for not wearing a helmet, and another two were stopped and had their vehicles impounded as they lacked a driver’s license!
Next on the agenda shall be cars, with a standard fines if a MOT or ITV is out of date, plus probable impounding and recovery costs to be paid if your vehicle does not have all of its legal paperwork. The Police also have access to a new database, in certain parts of the Costa Blanca, that links to the DVLA in the UK to check the status of your MOT certificate and, if out of date, this will most likely mean that your insurance is null and void, which will result in an even bigger fine and impounding of your car or van! Be prepared and double check that all of your paperwork is up to date and that you have everything required in your car with you at all times.
While most of the Spanish were huddled around a TV watching Spain beat Chile in the World Cup, on the evening of Friday, June 25, there was a joint operation carried out by the local police and the Guardia Civil on the Vista Alegre, La Libertad and Juan Aparicio. They confiscated 48 watches, 143 pairs of sunglasses, eight pairs of shoes, 42 bags, 30 pieces of clothing (shirts, shirts, bathing suits), 7 portfolios and 542 items of jewelry (pendants, bracelets). This was the first of many such joint operations in order to eliminate unauthorized vending on the streets of Torrevieja.