One in 5 drivers in Seoul to have been ticketed has unpaid parking violation fines, resulting in an accumulated unpaid sum of 11.3 billion won ($8.5 million), the city of Seoul reported.
According to data released by the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Sunday, the capital city witnessed approximately 1.42 million parking violation instances during an eight-month period from January to August this year. A total of 55.2 billion won was levied in fines, but approximately 20 percent, amounting to 11.3 billion won, remained outstanding.
In a look at data from the past five years, there were eight individuals with unpaid fines exceeding 20 million won.
The most heavily fined individual had accumulated unpaid fines of about 44.1 million won from 565 parking violation cases.
In terms of the number of tickets, the top ranker received 752 parking tickets during the five-year period, with an unpaid sum of 43 million won.
Individuals issued parking tickets are obligated to complete payment within a 60-day window. After this period, additional charges are imposed monthly for a duration of 60 months.
Parking fines vary based on the location where vehicles are parked. According to the Enforcement Decree of the Road Traffic Act, illegal parking for a full-size sedan incurs a fine of 40,000 won on general roads, 80,000 won within 5 meters of fire hydrants, 80,000 won in protection areas for senior and disabled persons and 120,000 won in school zones.
Among the 25 districts in Seoul, Gangnam-gu emerged as the clear standout, with unpaid fines totaling 6.8 billion won. Next but trailing far behind were Jung-gu and Seocho-gu, with outstanding fines of 972 million won and 702 million won, respectively.
