Federal Government plan to rid rental van firm Wicked Campers of their offensive slogans

Notorious rental van firm Wicked Campers and their obscene slogans are about to be forced off the road as the Federal Government plans to rid Australia of the offensive slogans on the vehicles.

The federal Government has announced plans to rid Australia of the vehicles with their offensive slogans. Picture: Anna Rogers

• Registration rules to ban offensive slogans on all SA vehicles
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The end of the road is nigh for notorious rental van firm Wicked Campers and their obscene slogans after the federal Government announced a plan to rid Australia of the offensive vehicles.

As two Wicked Campers rolled into Port Noarlunga on Friday — one emblazoned with “Back in my day, blowing a tranny was car trouble” and “Massive c**k” — the Government unveiled a multi-pronged strategy to outlaw the rental company’s “disgusting” slogans.

Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer has written to state and territory leaders as well as Transport Ministers to seek their support to advance a national campaign to forced Wicked Campers, favoured by backpackers, to comply with community standards.

“We have no tolerance for sexist, misogynistic and offensive slogans on campervans, or those displayed anywhere else for that matter, no matter how hard some try to justify their existence,” she said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Michael McCormack will also continue advocating for regulatory reforms to crack down on the campers via the Transport and Infrastructure Council forum.

Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer

Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Michael McCormack

He will urge state and territory transport ministers to legislate to ban the vulgar slogans.

At a council meeting last year, the Austroads Registration and Licencing Taskforce was given the go-ahead to progress national adoption of the Queensland Government’s approach.

Furthermore, both Ms O’Dwyer and Mr McCormack are calling on international visitors to boycott Wicked Campers and instead choose to rent vehicles that do not carry offensive signage.

Both Queensland and Tasmania have already legislated to give power to motor vehicle registries to deregister vehicles that do not comply with Advertising Standards determinations.

However, Wicked Campers in those jurisdictions have avoided being taken off the road by registering their vehicles in another state or territory.

The national strategy aims to close this loophole.

In November last year, the State Opposition introduced legislation into parliament that would give the Registrar of Motor Vehicles the power to cancel or refuse to renew vehicle registrations on cars, vans and trucks displaying sexist, racist and otherwise offensive slogans.

The Registrar would be permitted to exercise this power if the Advertising Standards Bureau upheld complaints about offensive slogans.

The bill mimicked Queensland’s legislation. However, the matter has been adjourned multiple times and is due to next be debated when state Parliament sits in two weeks.

Labor MP Katrine Hildyard

State Transport Minister Stephan Knoll

Labor MP Katrine Hildyard urged the Government to support the Opposition’s bill.

“Clearly the Premier is becoming increasingly isolated in his lack of action to end the disrespect and violence towards women that these vans promote so I call on him to come out and say he will support or bill,” she said.

“It’s time for him to act.”

State Transport Minister Stephan Knoll, who in November said the Government had been looking into the issue but anything less than a national approach would be unsuccessful, described the Federal move as “the outcome that the Marshall Government had been advocating for”.

“We support a national approach and look forward to seeing the detail of any proposal,” he said.