The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has clarified that motor vehicle license plate confiscation during apprehensions by its law enforcers and deputized agents is prohibited.
LTO Chief Jose Arturo “Jay Art” M. Tugade recently issued a memorandum to underscore the provisions under Joint Administrative Order (JAO) No. 2014-01, which states that a driver's license, student permit, or motor vehicle can only be flagged if the apprehending law enforcer cannot immediately administer the relevant penalty to the vehicle or driver.
Tugade made the move in response to numerous complaints received by the LTO from the public about license plate confiscation by its enforcers.
“In all instances where the penalty includes the confiscation, suspension or revocation of a driver's license or student permit, as well as the suspension or revocation of the registration of a motor vehicle or impounding the motor vehicle, and the same cannot be immediately implemented, the driver's license, the student permit, or motor vehicle, as the case may be, shall be placed on alarm until the proper penalty may be implemented," Tugade said, citing the JAO.
In addition, the LTO chief stressed that all LTO law enforcers and authorized agents are forbidden from confiscating license plates if they cannot impound the apprehended motor vehicles.
Tugade has assured the public that the agency's central command center can quickly communicate information on flagged motor vehicles to officers on the ground.