Lawyer for the Vilvoorde Police Court

The Vilvoorde police court (politierechtbank / tribunal de police) handles the traffic cases of one of the busiest regions in the country: the R0, the E19, the A12, the N1 and the area around the airport. Anyone who drives there every day knows how quickly a roadside check can happen. What comes next — a summons (dagvaarding / citation), a driving ban, reinstatement tests (herstelexamens / examens de réintégration) — is less well known. This page sets out what you risk and how a lawyer can assist you before the Vilvoorde police court.

Vilvoorde police court: practical information

• Vilvoorde police court, Luchthavenlaan 4, 1800 Vilvoorde.
• Competent for traffic cases from the judicial cantons of Asse, Meise, Vilvoorde and Zaventem in the Halle-Vilvoorde district, including Vilvoorde, Machelen, Zaventem, Grimbergen, Meise and Asse. For the other municipalities, the Halle police court has jurisdiction.
• Proceedings are conducted in Dutch. If you would like your case to be dealt with in French, you must apply in good time for a change of language under the Act of 15 June 1935 on the use of languages in judicial matters.
• As a rule, your lawyer can represent you; the court may, however, order you to appear in person.

Traffic cases in Vilvoorde: the most common issues

Since 1 September 2026, the penalties under the Road Traffic Act (Wegverkeerswet / loi relative à la police de la circulation routière) have been converted into the penalty levels of the new Criminal Code. The penalties below apply to offences committed on or after that date; for earlier offences, the old penalty framework continues to apply, unless the new one is more favourable (Article 2 of the Criminal Code).

Speeding on the R0, the E19 and the A12

Average speed checks and fixed speed cameras on the R0, the E19 and the A12 generate many cases in which the driver was not stopped. The holder of the number plate is then presumed to have been driving (Article 67bis of the Road Traffic Act). That presumption can be rebutted: if you were not driving, answer the request for information fully and within the time limit set.

For company cars, the persons representing the company must identify the driver (Article 67ter), and they face prosecution themselves if they fail to do so. If you are summoned for speeding, you risk a level 1 penalty: a fine of €100 to €5,000 and a driving ban, which is as a rule mandatory for speeding by more than 40 km/h, or by more than 30 km/h in a built-up area, zone 30, school zone, shared zone or home zone (Article 29 § 3 of the Road Traffic Act). More on speeding offences.

Alcohol and drugs after checks around the airport and nightlife areas

From 0.35 mg/l of exhaled alveolar air, you risk a summons and a level 1 penalty: a fine of €2,000 to €20,000 and a possible driving ban. From 0.78 mg/l, an alcohol interlock is in principle mandatory, and for repeat offenders from as low as 0.50 mg/l.

For drugs (Article 37bis), a level 1 penalty also applies, with a fine of €2,000 to €20,000. What counts is not the roadside saliva test itself but the laboratory analysis of the saliva sample, which has its own thresholds. A repeat alcohol or drug offence within three years (Article 36) is punishable by a level 2 penalty and a fine of €4,000 to €50,000. Alcohol · Drugs · Alcohol interlock.

Driving without a licence or during a withdrawal

An immediate withdrawal of your licence (onmiddellijke intrekking / retrait immédiat) ordered by the public prosecutor’s office lasts fifteen days; the police court can extend it by up to three months. That period is later deducted from any driving ban. Immediate withdrawal.

Driving during the withdrawal is a level 2 offence, carrying a fine of €2,000 to €20,000 and a mandatory driving ban (verval van het recht tot sturen / déchéance du droit de conduire) of three months to five years or permanently (Article 30 § 3 of the Road Traffic Act). Driving without the required licence is also a level 2 offence, with a fine of €2,000 to €20,000. At level 2, the court chooses, among other options, between imprisonment of six months to three years, an electronic monitoring sentence, community service or a probation sentence. Driving without a licence.

Hit-and-run

On busy approach roads it happens often: a collision with limited damage, and the person involved drives on. The prosecution must prove, among other things, that you knew you had been involved in an accident and that you drove away to avoid the necessary findings. Camera footage and witness statements do not always show this.

Where there is only property damage, hit-and-run (vluchtmisdrijf / délit de fuite) is a level 1 offence (fine of €2,000 to €20,000, discretionary driving ban), without imprisonment. With injuries it becomes a level 2 offence, and with a fatality a level 3 offence, in each case with a mandatory driving ban. More on hit-and-run.

Road traffic accidents with injuries

As a rule, the police court also rules on injuries caused by a road traffic accident: for offences on or after 1 September 2026, harming physical integrity in traffic (integriteitsaantasting in het verkeer, Article 218 of the Criminal Code, level 2 penalty); for earlier offences, unintentional injury (onopzettelijke slagen of verwondingen). The victim can join the proceedings as a civil party and claim compensation before the same judge. It is therefore best to handle the criminal case and the settlement of damages as part of a single strategy. Compensation after a road traffic accident.

What a strong defence can achieve

Even when the facts are established, the penalty is not set in stone. In certain cases, the court can order the driving ban to be served only at weekends (Article 38 § 2bis of the Road Traffic Act) or limit it to certain categories of vehicle (Article 45). For anyone working irregular hours in the airport area, that difference is very tangible.

You can also ask for suspension of the pronouncement of sentence, a suspended sentence (including for the driving ban), community service or a conviction by declaration of guilt (Articles 64, 65, 45 and 51 of the Criminal Code); you can consent to community service through your lawyer. When setting the fine, the court takes your financial means into account and, if you are in a precarious situation, it may go below the minimum or allow payment in instalments (Article 52 § 2 of the Criminal Code). Suspension, suspended sentence and community service · Avoiding or limiting a driving ban.

Preparing your case

1. Send us the summons as soon as you receive it, so that we can request the criminal file in good time.
2. Gather the documents that support your situation: employer’s certificate, work schedules, payslips, family situation.
3. Tell us about any previous convictions in the last three years: if certain serious traffic offences are repeated within three years of a conviction, a driving ban of at least three months and the four reinstatement tests are mandatory (Article 38 § 6 of the Road Traffic Act).
4. Is there an injured party? A settlement reached before the hearing can be taken into account when the penalty is determined.

Your lawyer before the Vilvoorde police court

Mr Mohamed Asfour, lawyer at Novex Advocaten, pleads before the police courts of Vilvoorde, Halle, Leuven, Aalst and Brussels, in Dutch, French, English and Arabic. The office is located at Avenue Louise 379, 1050 Brussels.

Call 0484 99 22 72 or email asfour@novexadvocaten.be.