Paid a fine for your friend? You could be punished.

Imagine your friend gets a ticket and asks you to pay it for him. You click “pay”, forget about it — and... risk being held liable for an offence.

According to Article 57 §1 point 2 of the Polish Code of Petty Offences, paying a fine, ticket, or compensation on someone else’s behalf — without a court order — is punishable. The penalty can be a fine of up to 5,000 PLN.

🔍 We submitted public information requests to courts and law enforcement bodies. Responses from the District Court in Sandomierz and other courts clearly show that between 2015 and 2025, there were no convictions for this offence.
The only exception is the District Court for Warsaw-Mokotów, which reported one conviction for such an offence during that entire period.

What does this mean? The law formally exists but is rarely applied in practice. Still, it can be used if authorities choose to enforce it.

👀 Good to know:

• The police can determine who actually made the payment.

• If you are not the person named in the ticket and have no court order obliging you to pay — don’t risk it.

📌 In short: helping a friend might cost you more than you think. Instead of a “friendly transfer” — it’s better to consult a lawyer.

📞 Need legal advice? Law Office of Andriy Dementiy
📩 kancelaria@ad-adwokat.pl | ☎️ +48 533 648 811