Points, Loss of Driver's License

Germans, especially men, consider it a nature-given commodity the permission to drive a motor vehicle. If such ill fate were to happen that a German looses his permit, he will quickly arm "big bertha" to contest such "impossibility". This page will introduce to the system of "points (Punkte) in Flensburg". The city of Flensburg is not only known for its beer but also for the registry of sins: Kraftfahrzeugbundesamt.


How can I lose my driver’s license?

“Driver’s license” will be understood here as the permission to drive cars (motorbikes, trucks, etc.). There are two ways to loose your driving permission; either the administrative office (Kraftfahrzeugstelle) in your municipality or the penal court may forbid you to drive. The administrative office will take your license away when you showed that you are not capable of driving orderly. The penal court will relieve you of your license as an extra punishment next to being punished for a traffic crime in respect to motor vehicles. And when your middle name is Goofy and you lost your license and cannot find it again, please check out the previously published article Database on Lost Documents.

What is meant when Germans speak of having or gaining points in Flensburg? I thought that was a city in the north of Germany.

That city is not only famous for Beate Uhse, the leading corporation for sexual toys in Germany. It is also known as the site of the central registry for traffic offenses. Dubbed, “the registry of sins”, this office keeps track of everybody’s points. The punishment, the point, is only received for traffic offenses. An example of its jurisdiction is speeding. To protect other drivers from drivers and owners of a vehicle repeatedly violating traffic rules, the authority brands dangerous drivers with points. Germans have a love/hate relationship with the registry. The name of the town is now synonymous with the registry. If you wind up in court for a traffic offense, this registry will always be consulted. The judge will get a complete report, starting with your first offense, even if older points have been deleted and withheld from administrative offices outside the courts. It is all a little sad, actually, because Flensburg is a pleasant town.    

Being a careful driver, I was recently astonished by a letter from my municipality. It said I have racked up 10 points. I ought to participate in a constructive seminar to reduce my score. How did this happen to me?

Well, how could that happen? It looks like Flensburg has just told you to attend the seminar so you can keep your license. Drivers get letters like this whenever they achieve a score of 8 to 13 points (§4 III no. 1 StVG). The good news is that you do not really have to go to the seminar, since the office is actually just giving you a warning. If your score is less than 8 points, you could visit a so called constructive seminar, then give your diploma to the license authority within 3 months of graduation. That would lower your score by 4 points.     

Being a normal driver, I just received an interesting letter from my municipality. It says I collected 15 points, and have to attend a constructive seminar to reduce my score.

Tsk, tsk,tsk. The driver's license office wants you to know that you have to act now in order to keep your license. You are obliged to visit such a seminar! Drivers get this letter when they collect 14 to 17 points (§4 III no. 2 StVG). After accomplishing the seminar, give a copy of your certificate to the driver's license authority within three months after the seminar. That shaves 2 points off your score. If you don’t comply within the prescribed time, then the driver's license authority will withdraw your license (§4 VII StVG ). The only way to recover your license then is to prove you attended a constructive seminar. It might happen that you will have to completely redo your license.  

Being a proud driver, I was just shocked by a letter from my city government. It says I collected 20 points and I am to surrender my driver’s license. Are they crazy? I need my driver’s license! That’s liking taking away my ID‼

Congratulations on your top score! The city is rewarding you by collecting your license – you must hand it in. If you refuse, then you are really in trouble… In a short while, the police will spontaneously show up at your door and enforce the office’s order. If you are caught driving in the meantime, you face punishment in accordance with §21 StVG (Driving without Driving Permission), which means up to a year in prison or a hefty fine. You can count on getting this letter whenever you reach 18 or more points (§4 III no. 3 StVG). Your license will be withheld for a period of at least six months. Theoretically, you can apply for a new one starting the seventh month after losing your license. However, expect to run into problems, nevertheless. You will have to demonstrate to the authorities that you have turned into a responsible driver. To do so, you will have to consult an authorized traffic-psychological consultancy and pass the so-called “idiot test”.

I just thought up a way to keep my points down automatically. I will attend a constructive seminar every year! That should work, should it not?

Nice try, but forget it. No one will keep you from attending the seminar. However, it will only lower your score every 5 years.

What is this constructive seminar all about?

Start with the fact that this kind of seminar is popularly called an “idiot test training.” Participants at the seminar are supposed to take part in group conversations and driving tests. Theoretically, they learn to recognize and reduce shortcomings in their attitudes and abilities with regard to the rules of the road. You can also apply to the authorities for an individual seminar, which serves people who have driven under the influence of alcohol or other intoxicants. Only driving instructors, who have a special license, may carry out the constructive seminars. 

After having received my first points in Flensburg, I wonder what happens to them now. Will they expire at any time?

Points will be deleted depending on how many there are and for what reason they were given. Most points will be annulled between two and five years. Points due to an accident will be deleted after 10 years.      


Additional information