Mechelen cancels 60 fines issued to drivers following police fire diversion
Mechelen authorities are cancelling about 60 fines wrongly issued to motorists who passed a traffic restriction while following a police diversion during a fire on Koningin Astridlaan.
In 30 seconds
- Police said about 60 motorists received fines after following the diversion.
- Koningin Astridlaan was closed during a fire on Saturday 25 July at about 20:00.
- The motorists passed a camera-enforced restriction while following police instructions.
- The reports will be dismissed and paid amounts refunded automatically.
Updated 24 August 2026, 18:00 CEST — . Police Rivierenland confirmed that about 60 drivers who followed an official diversion during a fire on Koningin Astridlaan on Saturday 25 July were wrongly fined and will not have to pay, according to . Any motorists who have already paid will receive an automatic refund.
Emergency services responded at about 20:00 to a fire at the rear of a townhouse near Brusselpoort, Het Nieuwsblad reported. Police temporarily closed Koningin Astridlaan so firefighters could work and directed motorists towards a service road. That route took the vehicles past a camera-enforced traffic restriction.
The same publisher reported separately that the fire affected a building divided into three flats. Two flats were declared uninhabitable, while no injuries were reported. Police said at the time that the fire appeared accidental, although an investigation still had to confirm the cause.
Police Rivierenland spokesperson Dirk Van de Sande attributed the fines to a break between the operational handling of the diversion and the subsequent administrative process. The police said the resulting reports will be dismissed. GAS Rivierenland will also write to every affected driver, while those who paid will have the money returned without submitting a request.
The error matters directly because the drivers were acting on police instructions during an emergency. The announced cancellation removes the financial consequence, but recipients still need clear written confirmation that their individual files have been closed.
The incident also exposes a practical weakness in camera-based enforcement: temporary decisions made by officers on the street must reach the administrative system before notices are generated. A published Mechelen council response describes a multi-stage process in which police files are transferred to GAS Rivierenland, checked in administrative software and converted into letters for motorists. Mechelen has previously disabled enforcement cameras when roadworks required traffic to use a normally restricted route, according to another official council response.
Where this is happening
View on map Mechelen →There is no wider Belgian or European policy dispute at the centre of this case. It is a local administrative failure in Mechelen, followed by a corrective decision. Affected motorists should retain the fine and the promised cancellation letter until the case is formally settled. The authorities have not said publicly whether procedures will change to prevent another emergency diversion from triggering automatic fines.
What to do
If you received a fine after following the police diversion in Mechelen on Saturday 25 July, you should not have to pay it: the report is due to be dismissed. If you already paid, the amount should be refunded automatically, without a separate repayment request. Watch for a letter from GAS Rivierenland confirming that your file has been corrected, and keep the fine notice and payment record until the refund and written confirmation arrive. The article does not provide a deadline for the letters or repayments.
Impact
Regional — The impact is confined primarily to roughly 60 motorists routed through the restricted point in Mechelen and to the local police and administrative services correcting their files.
EvidenceDeveloping · 1 primary source + 2 official documents + 1 independent reporting source · some details remain unconfirmedExplore evidence →Hide evidence ↑
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- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 24 Aug 2026
- Published:
- 25 Jul 2026, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 24 Aug 2026
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 24 Aug 2026
- Published:
- 5 Apr 2025, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 24 Aug 2026
Voices & reactions
What the main actors are doing
Reported positions, summarised — not direct quotationsPolice Rivierenland and GAS Rivierenland
The authorities acknowledge that the fines resulted from a failure between the on-street emergency operation and the later administrative handling. Their remedy is to dismiss every affected report, refund payments automatically and notify the motorists in writing.
Affected motorists
The drivers were following police directions rather than choosing to disregard the restriction. Their practical interest is therefore not an ordinary appeal against enforcement, but prompt confirmation that each notice has been cancelled and any payment has been returned.
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