Selling “Flensburg points” online: a serious legal fraud that demands strict prosecution

In Germany, Flensburg points are not just a number in a traffic record – they are a sensitive “safety balance” that reflects a driver’s reliability on the road. As the risk of losing one’s driving licence increases with accumulating points, a new black market has emerged: the sale or “transfer” of points via “agents” or online agencies.
However, this option is not legal at all. It is classified as a criminal offence that calls for strict prosecution.

How are points “sold”?

• The actual offender – or someone facing an imminent licence suspension – looks for a person who resembles them physically and is willing to be registered as the driver responsible for the offence.

• The hearing forms (Anhörungsbogen) are sent to this “buyer”, who signs and declares that they were driving at the time of the offence.

• The fine is paid, and the points are entered into the buyer’s record, while the proceedings against the original offender are dropped.

• The process is often organised through specialised agencies, which charge between 100 and 1,000 euros per point, depending on the seriousness of the violation.

Is this legal?

German criminal law treats several elements of this practice as clear criminal offences:

• Making a false statement in an official document under another person’s name
  → can be classified as false accusation / false report and is punishable by up to 5 years’ imprisonment or a fine under § 164 StGB (anwalt.org).

• Falsifying documents or data, or knowingly registering incorrect information
  → is punishable under § 271 StGB (indirect false certification) with up to 3 years’ imprisonment or a fine.

• Even if the “buyer” claims that they actually committed the offence, the organised “trade in points” is regarded as a deliberate manipulation of the system and a fraud on public order.

Who is liable?

• The original points holder / offender:
  They risk charges of false reporting, false accusation or participation in document fraud, with penalties of up to 5 years in prison or substantial fines.

• The person who accepts the points (the “straw man”):
  They may also face charges of data falsification, false self-incrimination or aiding and abetting fraud, exposing them to similar penalties (flensburg.com).

• In addition, intermediaries and online agencies that organise the points trade can be prosecuted for incitement, aiding and abetting or commercial fraud.

Is this exploiting a “legal loophole”?

In legal discussions, there is some debate:

• A voluntary self-incrimination (Selbstbezichtigung) – where a person spontaneously declares themselves to be the offender – may, in some cases, not be punishable, even if they were not actually driving, as long as there is no commercial background.

• However, as soon as there is organised collusion, payment or mediation via a third party, the practice turns into a criminal manipulation of the system.

For this reason, organisations such as the ADAC and experts at the Verkehrsgerichtstag have been calling for clearer legal rules and stricter penalties to close these loopholes (autozeitung.de).

How do the authorities respond?

• Authorities carry out detailed photo comparisons between the speed or red-light camera images and the official photos of the person claiming to be the driver.

• Social media profiles and other publicly available data may be checked to verify identities and expose contradictions.

• There are increasing calls to impose very high fines, potentially in the five-digit range, in severe cases, in order to make the points trade unattractive and send a strong deterrent message.

What are the legal alternatives?

• Attending a Fahreignungsseminar (driving aptitude seminar):
  Drivers with up to 5 points who have not attended such a seminar in the past 5 years can legally remove 1 point from their record (bussgeldkatalog.org).

• Waiting for points to expire:
  Each entry in the register has a statutory retention and deletion period. By driving responsibly and avoiding new offences, points will automatically be deleted over time – without any black-market involvement.

Conclusion

The sale or online transfer of Flensburg points is not a clever trick to escape sanctions, but a full-fledged criminal fraud that exposes all involved parties to real criminal prosecution.
Sanctions range from heavy fines to imprisonment – and in some cases, this can happen over just a single point.

The only safe route is to rely on legal mechanisms to reduce points (seminars, improved driving behaviour, waiting for expiry), rather than entering a black market that can turn a traffic offence into a criminal record.

The editorial team aims to provide accurate information based on thorough research and multiple sources. However, errors or uncertainties cannot be completely ruled out. The content of this article should therefore be seen as initial guidance, and you should always contact the competent authorities for binding and up-to-date information.