Denmark was the first country in the world to introduce a law against reckless drivers. Now, the latest figures from the Danish National Police show that there are fewer of them.
It's late at night and your car has been impounded. That's the message thousands of reckless drivers have received in recent years.
But now new figures from the National Police, which Danmarks Radio has been given access to, show that the number of reckless drivers is falling.
While 217 charges were filed for reckless driving in 2023, that number was down to 163 last year. In total, in October 2024, the police had charged 3,965 people for reckless driving on Danish roads.
And the fact that the number of reckless drivers is on the decline is pleasing to AutoBranchen Denmark, which represents several of the companies that risk having their cars seized because customers drive recklessly in them.
– It is positive that reckless driving is apparently on the decline. No doubt about it. We are still working on ensuring that dealers can lend out their cars more safely.
– But until then, it is useful for dealers to learn more about who commits reckless driving and in what situations it happens, so that they can protect themselves as best as possible, says Gitte Seeberg, CEO of AutoBranchen Denmark in a press release .
So who is driving recklessly on Danish roads? According to the Danish National Police, it is predominantly men who press the accelerator too hard or drive around drunk. In 87 percent of the cases, the police charged male reckless drivers. While a female reckless driver has only played a role in 13 percent of the cases.
When it comes to geography, there is perhaps something surprising: only 0.2 reckless drivers per 1,000 inhabitants. That figure is 0.7 on Bornholm and in Central and West Jutland. While the Lolland-Falster police say the most – namely 0.8 reckless drivers per 1,000 inhabitants.
The figures also show that either Danish citizens or people residing here are charged with driving under the influence of insanity. This has happened in 2,850 cases. While citizens from Poland, Romania, Ukraine and Latvia are close behind.
Both the Germans and people with addresses in Norway have also had to hand over cars to the Danish state. In fact, the most well-known case of reckless driving is not with a Dane behind the wheel at all. However, the man still believes that 'Denmark has stolen the car'. Read more about it here .
The fact that the time between reckless driving incidents has become longer does not mean that politicians are considering relaxing the law or looking the other way altogether. Instead, it became clear as early as 2023 that the government is considering tightening the legislation. Several parties reiterated this position last year.
