Fines Are No Longer Enough: Poland Moves to Send Drunk Drivers Behind Bars

The Polish Ministry of Justice has drafted amendments to the Criminal Code to eliminate alternative sentences and conditional discontinuations for intoxicated drivers and violators of judicial bans.

Stricter Liability for Road Offenses

Drivers operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs, as well as individuals ignoring court-mandated bans, may face stricter liability rules. The Ministry of Justice project limits the application of non-custodial sentences and the conditional discontinuation of proceedings.

The Ministry of Justice has prepared an amendment to the Criminal Code regarding traffic offenses. As established by “Rzeczpospolita,” a driver operating a vehicle while intoxicated or under the influence of an intoxicant while simultaneously violating a court driving ban would receive a custodial sentence.

The court could not stop at a fine or restriction of liberty, such as community service. Suspending the execution of a prison sentence would be permissible only in particularly justified cases. The draft has not yet been enacted, so the date the provisions will enter into force cannot currently be indicated.

End of Conditional Discontinuation of Proceedings

The ministry also wants to exclude the possibility of conditionally discontinuing proceedings concerning driving a vehicle while intoxicated, the repeat commission of such an offense, and the violation of a court driving ban. Changes would cover acts defined in Article 178a paragraph 1, Article 178a paragraph 4, and Article 244 of the Criminal Code.

Currently, a court may conditionally discontinue proceedings if guilt and social harmfulness are not significant, and the previously unpunished perpetrator’s attitude allows the assumption that they will abide by the law. After the change, even a person who drove for the first time with an alcohol concentration slightly exceeding the statutory limit could not use this possibility.

Fines and Community Service Out of Court Reach

The draft also provides for an amendment to Article 37a of the Criminal Code. This provision currently allows replacing a short prison sentence with a fine of at least 150 daily rates or a restriction of liberty lasting at least four months.

The ministry wants to exclude the application of this solution against individuals driving vehicles while intoxicated and perpetrators violating court bans. Consequently, the court would have to impose a prison sentence.

Driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs currently carries up to three years in prison. Violating a court driving ban, meanwhile, is punishable by a term of three months to five years in prison.

Judicial Bans Versus Revocation of Qualifications

The projected tightening of penalties will not cover all unlicensed drivers to the same extent. Violating a ban imposed by a court is subject to Article 244 of the Criminal Code. Driving despite an administrative decision to revoke qualifications, however, is an offense under Article 180a of the Criminal Code.

Violating an administrative decision is punishable by a fine, restriction of liberty, or up to two years in prison. The draft described by “Rzeczpospolita” does not assume the complete exclusion of the possibility of conditionally discontinuing proceedings in such cases.

Thousands of Drivers Ignore Court Bans

In 2025, police officers revealed 16,724 individuals driving despite a court ban. Another 10,182 drivers were detained for driving despite the administrative revocation of qualifications.

During this time, officers conducted 17,902,284 sobriety tests and uncovered 95,262 drivers under the influence of alcohol. Drivers under the influence caused 1,141 accidents, in which 124 people died and 1,439 were injured.

Police data also indicated that about 800 people had more than ten active court driving bans. Record holders were subject to as many as nineteen bans.

Tragic Accidents Reignite the Discussion

On July 16, 2026, the District Court for Warsaw-Śródmieście sentenced Łukasz Żak to 20 years in prison for causing a fatal accident on the Łazienkowska Route. The man was driving under the influence, at significant speed, and despite applicable bans. The verdict is not final.

Two days later on the A1 highway, a driver was detained who had about 2.7 permille of alcohol, two court bans, and revoked qualifications. Initially, he was released without charges. Following the intervention of the National Prosecutor’s Office, the Częstochowa Regional Prosecutor’s Office took over the case, and the driver ended up in custody.

On July 29 in Kuźnica Stara, a BMW driver drove onto a sidewalk and fatally struck a nine-year-old boy. The driver had a five-year driving ban. According to investigators’ findings, he was under the influence of drugs.

Lawyers Warn Against Automatism

Critics of the project assess that it strips courts of the ability to adjust the penalty to the circumstances of a specific case. Professor Andrzej Sakowicz believes that conditional discontinuation should remain available, among others, toward an unpunished person who drove for the first time with an alcohol concentration slightly exceeding the state of intoxication limit.

Dr. Grzegorz Bogdan from Jagiellonian University points to a potential inconsistency in the provisions. The non-custodial sentence would not be available to a drunk driver, even though the offense carries up to three years in prison. At the same time, Article 37a could still apply to perpetrators of certain offenses punishable by up to eight years of deprivation of liberty.

Experts also warn that the change could bring the opposite result to the intended one. If the court cannot impose a fine or restriction of liberty, it may more frequently order short prison sentences with conditionally suspended execution.