Don’t drive in Switzerland
Speeding fines are calculated by taking into account the income of the motorist and the speed at which they were driving.
According to prosecutors, he is now facing the highest possible penalty of 300 days of fines at $3,376 a day – a total of $1.013M.
The driver was behind the wheel of a $250,000, 197mph Mercedes-Benz SLS on the A12 motorway between Bern and Lausanne on Friday.
Too fast to pay
However, the driver might consider himself fortunate to not be in more trouble, because Swiss prosecutors revealed he could well have been caught by many other speed cameras on the route – had he not been driving beyond the speed they operate. Old-style Swiss radar devices do not operate above 125mph.
Previous record fine
The $1.013M fine is thought to be the world's largest. In January, a Ferrari driver was fined $283,700 after being caught driving at 85mph in a 50mph zone – again in Switzerland.
You've been warned – avoid Switzerland or ride the train. The police in Switzerland are known as revenuers – they generate revenue to justify their existence by handing out huge speeding fines, rather than fighting real crime. Writing a revenue invoice to an unsuspecting motorist is safer than pursuing murderers and drug dealers where they might actually get themselves hurt.