Initiative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with a view to adopting on tackling vehicle crime with cross-border implications
Date: 2004-02-07
Institutions: Netherlands
Subjects: Netherlands, cooperation policy, legislative initiative, motor car, theft

C 34/18

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

7.2.2004

Initiative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with a view to adopting on tackling vehicle crime
with cross-border implications

(2004/C 34/16)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in
particular Article 30(1)(a) and Article 34(2)(c) thereof,

Having regard to the initiative of
Netherlands,

the Kingdom of

the

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament,

Having regard to the Council Resolution of 27 May 1999 on
combating international crime with fuller cover of the routes
used (1),

Whereas:

(1) An estimated 1,2 million motor vehicles are stolen each
year in the Member States of the European Union.

(2) These thefts involve considerable damage amounting to at

least EUR 15 billion per year.

(3) A large proportion of these vehicles, estimated at 30 to
40 %, are stolen by organised crime and then converted
and exported to other States within and outside the
European Union.

(4) Besides causing material damage, this is also seriously
damaging to citizens' sense of
justice and feeling of
security. Vehicle crime may be accompanied by serious
forms of violence.

(5) Consequently, attainment of the objective in Article 29 of
the Treaty, to provide citizens with a high level of safety
is
within an area of
hampered.

security and justice,

freedom,

(6) Vehicle crime may also be linked internationally to other
forms of crime, such as trafficking in drugs, firearms and
human beings.

(7) Tackling vehicle crime is a matter for the competence of
the Member States in the police and judicial sphere.

(8) However, a common approach involving — wherever
practicable and necessary — mutual assistance between
the Member States and law enforcement authorities of
the European Union is desirable in order to address the
cross-border aspects of this form of crime.

(1) OJ C 162, 9.6.1999, p. 1.

(9) Cooperation between police forces, customs and vehicle
registration authorities is of particular importance, as is
the provision of information to the relevant parties.

(10) Cooperation with Europol is equally important as Europol

can provide analyses and reports on the matter.

(11) CEPOL offers police forces in the Member States, via the
European Police Learning Net (EPLN), a library function in
the field of vehicle crime for consulting information and
expertise. Via its discussion function, EPLN also provides
the possibility of exchanging knowledge and experience.

(12) The fight against vehicle crime will be intensified by an
increase in the number of Member States acceding to the
Treaty concerning a European Vehicle and Driving
Licence Information System (Eucaris) of 29 June 2000.

(13) A number of specific measures will need to be taken if
vehicle crime with an international dimension is to be
combated effectively,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Definition

For the purposes of this Decision,
‘vehicle’ means any motor
vehicle with a cylinder capacity exceeding 50 cc and trailers
and caravans with an unladen weight exceeding 750 kg.

Article 2

Objective

The objective of this Decision is to arrive at a common
1.
approach and cooperation within the European Union with the
aim of preventing and combating cross-border vehicle crime.

2.
Particular attention shall be given to the relationship
between vehicle theft and the illegal car trade and other
forms of crime, such as trafficking in drugs,
firearms and
human beings.

Article 3

Cooperation between national competent authorities

Member States shall take the necessary steps to enhance mutual
cooperation between national competent authorities (police,
customs and vehicle registration authorities)
to
combat cross-border vehicle crime,
inter alia by means of
cooperation agreements.

in order

7.2.2004

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 34/19

Specific attention shall be given to controlling exports of
goods, taking into account respective competences.

3. Whenever blank registration certificates are reported
stolen, Member
shall
law enforcement
States'
immediately enter an alert thereon in the SIS.

agencies

Article 4

Cooperation between competent authorities and the
private sector

1. Member States shall take the necessary steps to organise
periodic consultations between law enforcement agencies and
vehicle registration authorities and the private sector (such as
holders of private registers of missing vehicles, insurers and the
car trade) with a view to coordination of information and
mutual alignment of activities in this area, preferably via a
permanent consultation platform.

2. Member States shall take the necessary steps with regard
to the procedures to be followed for repatriating vehicles
released by law enforcement agencies following their seizure.

Article 5

Vehicle crime contact points

1. Within three months from the date when this Decision
takes effect, Member States shall designate, within their law
enforcement agencies, a contact point
for tackling vehicle
crime.

2. Member States shall authorise the contact points to
and
exchange
technical
information concerning vehicle crime on the basis
of existing legislation.

as general

experience,

expertise

as well

3.
Information concerning the designated national contact
points, including subsequent changes, shall be notified to the
General Secretariat of the Council for publication in the Official
Journal of the European Union.

Article 6

Issuing alerts for stolen vehicles and blank registration
certificates

1. Whenever a vehicle is reported stolen, Member States'
immediately enter a stolen
law enforcement agencies shall
vehicle alert in the Schengen Information System (SIS) and
— where possible — in Interpol's ASF/Stolen Motor Vehicle
System.

Article 7

Registration

Law enforcement agencies and vehicle registration auth-
1.
orities shall take the necessary steps to prevent abuse and theft
of vehicle registration documents.

2. When (re-)registering a vehicle, national vehicle regis-
law
tration authorities
enforcement agencies, consult
the
country of original registration as well as the stolen vehicle
search registers referred to in Article 6.

in cooperation with the
the vehicle register of

shall,

3.
In order to prevent stolen vehicles being (re-)registered,
arrangements shall be made at national level for consultation
or linkage of the registration systems referred to in Article 6(1)
and also for checking the identity of the vehicles.

Article 8

Preventing abuse of vehicle registration certificates

In order

to prevent

abuse of vehicle

1.
registration
certificates, law enforcement agencies shall — where possible
— recover a vehicle owner's or vehicle holder's registration
certificate if the vehicle has been seriously damaged in an
accident (total loss).

2.
A registration certificate shall also be recovered where,
during a check by the law enforcement agency, it is suspected
that there has been an infringement concerning the vehicle's
identity markings.

3.
Registration certificates shall be returned only following
examination and positive verification of the vehicle's identity.

Article 9

Europol

Law enforcement agencies shall keep Europol
informed on
vehicle crime perpetrators (perpetrator groups), within the
scope of the latter's mandate and tasks.

Article 10

Promotion of expertise and training

An alert

2.
in the search register shall be immediately
withdrawn by the Member State which issued it as soon as
the reason for issuing an alert on the vehicle ceases to exist or
its owner withdraws the theft report.

Member States shall take the necessary steps to ensure that
national police and customs training institutes promote in
their curricula specialist training in the field of vehicle crime
prevention and detection.

C 34/20

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Official Journal of the European Union

7.2.2004

Article 11

Meeting of contact points and annual report to the
Council

National Schengen Information System as well as the vehicle
registration authority of that Member State.

Vehicle crime contact points shall hold a meeting at least once
a year under the auspices of the Member State holding the
Presidency of
invited to
participate in that meeting. The Presidency shall report to the
Council on the progress of practical police cooperation.

the Council. Europol

shall be

Article 12

Arrangements with third countries

1.
Partnership or cooperation agreements to be concluded
between the European Union and third countries shall as far as
possible include a provision concerning vehicle crime, and
more particularly concerning the verification of vehicles upon
registration in a third country where the vehicles originate in
one of the Member States.

2.
vehicles,

At the request of the third country for verification of
the
the Member State in question shall consult

Article 13

Evaluation

Implementation of this Decision shall be evaluated after three
years from the date on which it takes effect.

Article 14

Entry into effect

This Decision shall take effect on the day of its publication in
the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Brussels, . . .

For the Council

The President