Marcos signs law amending ‘Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act’
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. File photo
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has signed a law amending Republic Act (RA) 11235 or the “Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act.”
Several amendments were made under RA 12209—signed by Marcos on May 9—including in Section 4, which mandates motorcycle owners to register their motorcycles with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) within five days of acquiring ownership.
Under RA 12209, Section 4 now also specifies that in the event of a subsequent sale or disposition, “the owner who sold or disposed of a motorcycle shall report such sale or disposition, in person or online, to the LTO not later than five working days from the date of transaction.”
The new owner shall then cause the transfer of ownership of the motorcycle not later than 20 working days from the acquisition of ownership, while the LTO upon the new owner’s clearance fom the Highway Patrol Group, shall issue the corresponding Certificate of Registration within two working days
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It also reduced fine incurred to violators of the provision—from a penalty of imprisonment or a fine of not less than P20,000 but not more than P50,000 or both to not more than P5,000.
The amendment also states that no seizure can be made solely on the basis of the buyer’s non-compliance with the law’s requirements.
Meanwhile, the new law also mandates dealers to report all motorcycle repossessions to the LTO and submit an annual status report of repossessed units under their custody.
The new law also amended Section 5 to now require motorcycles to have larger, readable, and color-coded number plates.
Drivers without number plates now face a reduced fine of up to P5,000, instead of the original P50,000 to P100,000 or jail time.
No seizure must also be made if the owner presents proof of registration and is not at fault for the missing or unreadable plate.
The new law also amended Section 11 to reduce the penalty for failing to report lost number plates from up to P50,000 to a flat fine of P5,000.
Meanwhile, the amended Section 12 penalizes tampering or misuse of plates with 6 months to 2 years imprisonment or a fine up to P10,000 or both.
Similar punishment and fine will be imposed on persons who knowingly sell or buy an erased, tampered, altered, forged, or imitated number plate or readable number plate. /jpv
