Sacre bleu! The Sydney house where 18 drivers racked up 1580 demerit points

A crackdown on overseas drivers has unearthed one townhouse as the address of 30 licence holders, mostly French, who combined have racked up more than 2000 driver demerits — and $320,000 in unpaid fines — in a year.

A nondescript townhouse in southern Sydney is at the centre of what appears to be an orchestrated attempt by mainly French nationals to rort the NSW demerit point system to stay on the road while flouting road rules and sanctions.

The home, and individuals connected to it, are now in the sights of a government taskforce working to crack down on overseas drivers cheating the system including by falsely nominating other drivers for demerit points and delaying license suspension through repeated appeals.

In the past 12 months, a staggering 2102 demerit points have been accumulated by 30 licence holders who have listed the property as their home address.

Of those, 18 people have a combined demerits tally of 1580 demerit points. That would equate to more than 87 points each, enough for someone to lose their licence almost seven times over.

It’s understood 12 people of the 30 licence-holders registered at the address do not have demerit points against their licence.

Residents of a home in South Sydney been sent 974 penalty notices for driving offences between January and September. Picture: Richard Dobson.

From January 1 to the start of September, 974 penalty notices have been sent to the home, worth a staggering $322,698.

None have been paid, the government said.

Those at the home when the Telegraph visited on Monday all strongly denied breaching road rules and set up a video call with another man.

He blamed someone who had never lived at the home for the fines, claiming that the address had been used by temporary residents staying in hostels on paperwork to hire delivery scooters.

The Telegraph is not suggesting that the people at the home on Monday were responsible for the driving offences, only that the house is the home address for repeat rule breakers.

Locals in the street said that “more than 10” people live at the house and that a line of delivery scooters are usually parked out the front.

People at the house on Monday set up a call with another man, who said people who do not live there have used the address on paperwork. It is not suggested that the people at the home on Monday were responsible for the driving offences. Picture: Richard Dobson

Some 2102 demerit points have been accumulated at the property. It is not suggested that the people at the home on Monday were responsible for the driving offences. Picture: Richard Dobson

Despite the government knowing the staggering amount of road fines that have been accumulated at the address, it appears to be lost in a bureaucratic black hole.

NSW Police directed inquiries about the offences to Transport for NSW, which said the Demerit Point Integrity Taskforce is working to better share information to crack down on rorters. Revenue NSW is also involved as the agency that issues the fines.

The gaping loopholes that have allowed temporary residents to flout road rules without fear of enforcement was first exposed by the Telegraph in May, when a French delivery rider was caught having racked up 240 demerit points.

His offending was only uncovered when traffic police asked Transport for NSW for the man’s full driving record.

Ryde Highway patrol stopped a delivery motor scooter rider in May who had accumulated 240 demerit points in three months.

Drivers have been able to stay ahead of the system by appealing fines, falsely nominating other drivers for offences, or leaving the country before penalty notices catch up with them.

The Demerit Point Integrity Taskforce has now found someone with an even worse driving record.

It has unearthed an individual — unrelated to the southern Sydney home — who racked up an astonishing 553 demerit points.

They have been caught by speed cameras more than 160 times, stung by red-light cameras more than 10 times, and copped seven driving while unlicensed offences.

Roads Minister John Graham said people who are “flouting” the law have been able to leave the country with little more than an ‘au revoir’. Picture: NewsWire / Damian Shaw

They were also caught for a number of other offences including obstructing their number plate.

Roads Minister John Graham said the Demerit Point Integrity Taskforce, established in July, is working to close loopholes allowing drivers to flout the law.

“A tiny fraction out there are intentionally flouting our speed limits, traffic lights and other road rules before attempting to stay one step ahead of the demerit point system,” he said.

“In some cases, they then leave the country with an ‘au revoir’, never having paid a fine or spent time off the road for their laundry list of traffic offences.

“We have these people firmly in our sights and the Taskforce will work towards closing any loopholes they have exposed.”

Premier Chris Minns has acknowledged a “giant loophole” in the system and admitted that action should have been taken sooner.

“It looks like a giant loophole, a massive rort has taken place, largely involving foreign nationals coming to NSW, driving on our roads and working for businesses and racking up massive fines and then leaving before the sheriffs can enforce those fines,” he said to 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Tuesday morning. 

“We’ve got a task force that’s uncovered this, probably should’ve done it earlier but the demerit point regime has been in place for NSW for decades but this is obviously a giant loophole that you can drive a metaphorical Uber-Taxi through and we need to change it.”

Originally published as Sacre bleu! The Sydney house where 18 drivers racked up 1580 demerit points