When a person with a conditional driver's license sells or returns their existing vehicle and gets a new one, or wants to use a different vehicle during a repair period, the first question is whether the device-related status of the existing vehicle carries over to the new one. An alcohol interlock is a device that controls a vehicle's engine start based on results such as the driver's breath test. Changing vehicles involves not only moving the device but also rechecking the device status and registered details of the vehicle that will actually be driven.
Article 50-3 of Korea's Road Traffic Act sets out matters concerning people who have received an alcohol interlock conditional driver's license, and the registration and operation of certain motor vehicles fitted with the device. A person with a conditional license who intends to drive a motor vehicle must install the device and register it with the commissioner of the metropolitan or provincial police agency, and a registration procedure is also needed when important registered matters specified by Ordinance of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety change. However, you also need to read the proviso that the installation and registration obligation in paragraph 1 does not apply when the person intends to drive a motor vehicle in which a device has already been installed and registered under paragraph 2.
Look at the driving requirements based on the new vehicle
Article 50-3(3) states that a person with a conditional license must not drive a motor vehicle in which no alcohol interlock is installed or in which a device that does not meet the installation standards is installed. So when the vehicle actually being driven changes, such as a newly purchased vehicle, a leased or rented vehicle, or a replacement vehicle during maintenance, you must check against that vehicle's status.
The fact that the existing vehicle had a device and kept operating records does not stand in for the device installation status of the new vehicle. Conversely, seeing the same type of device in the new vehicle does not mean you can immediately conclude that it can be driven under the conditional license. This is because the law deals separately with the presence of the device, its compliance with installation standards, and the registered details.
Moving the device and changing the registration are separate issues
Reviewing whether the device can be removed from the existing vehicle and reinstalled in the new one during a vehicle change is a question about the combination of device and vehicle. Checking whether the installation details registered with the commissioner of the metropolitan or provincial police agency need to be changed, on the other hand, is a question about the registration procedure. A judgment that the device can be fitted to the new vehicle does not by itself mean the registration procedure is finished.
Article 50-3(1) requires registration when important matters specified by Ordinance of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety change, but the provision alone does not let you conclude that every vehicle change necessarily counts as a change in such important matters. However, since the vehicle actually being driven changes, you need to compare the vehicle information in the existing registration records with the new vehicle's information and the device installation information, and confirm the necessary procedures.
| Vehicle change situation | What to check first | What to organize after checking |
|---|---|---|
| Returning or disposing of the existing vehicle | Existing vehicle's plate number, device installation records, registration records | Keep the existing vehicle's records separate from the new vehicle's records |
| Moving the device to a new vehicle | Whether the device and the new vehicle meet the installation standards | Check the installation review and whether a registration change is needed separately |
| Using a replacement vehicle | Device installation status of the replacement vehicle that will actually be driven | Do not assume the existing vehicle's registration applies automatically |
The reason for splitting situations as in the table is that the single expression "changing cars" mixes different actions. For example, when you use a replacement vehicle for a few days, you may not move the device, while moving the existing device to a new vehicle creates records for both the returned vehicle and the new one at the same time. Only when you are clear about which vehicle you intend to drive, and when, can you sort out what needs to be checked.
Why vehicle records must not be mixed
According to Article 50-3(6), a person who has registered the installation of a device must submit the operating records of the motor vehicle fitted with the device to the commissioner of the metropolitan or provincial police agency at least twice a year and must undergo inspection of matters such as whether the device is working properly. When you change vehicles, if you keep the existing vehicle's operating records and the new vehicle's installation records mixed in one file, it becomes hard to tell which vehicle each record relates to.
Let us take a hypothetical case. Suppose a driver with a conditional license returns their existing passenger car, takes delivery of a new vehicle, and wants to move the existing device to the new vehicle. The observation that the device worked properly in the existing vehicle and that operating records exist is a fact about the existing vehicle. It cannot be read as a conclusion that the new vehicle can also be driven, and the new vehicle's device installation status and the need for a registration or change procedure must be examined separately.
One possible action is to keep the operating records and installation records bearing the existing vehicle's plate number separately, and to organize the new vehicle's information and the information on the device installed in it separately. Then check the technical review related to device installation and whether the registered details need to change, each on its own. The completion standard in this case is not the fact that the device was moved, but a state in which the device status of the new vehicle that will actually be driven and the necessary registration procedure have been confirmed, and the records are linked vehicle by vehicle.
Do not treat a replacement vehicle as an extension of the existing one
Even if you use a different vehicle for just a few days because of accident repair or maintenance, it is hard to assume that the original vehicle's device installation and registration status carries over to the replacement vehicle as is. This is because Article 50-3(3) sets the restriction based on whether a device is installed in the motor vehicle the person with a conditional license drives and whether it meets the installation standards.
The same applies to a vehicle shared with family or colleagues. Whether a device is installed in that vehicle and whether a person with a conditional license can drive it must be looked at separately. In addition, Article 50-3(5) prohibits another person from blowing into the device on behalf of the conditional license driver, or starting the engine by other fraudulent means.
Include the point when checks are finished in the changeover schedule
If you align only the vehicle contract date, delivery date, and return date, you may overlook the time needed for device-related work and registration checks. First, organize the existing vehicle's plate number, device installation records, registration records, and operating records by vehicle. Then you can plan in this order: examine whether the installation standards are met based on the new or replacement vehicle's information and device installation status, and confirm through the relevant procedures whether the registered details need to change.
Article 50-3(4) makes removal for inspection or maintenance of the device an exception to the prohibition on removal. However, handling the device for inspection or maintenance does not mean the driving requirements for another vehicle have been met. If you manage the vehicle changeover date, the date of device-related work, and the date the registration or change procedure is confirmed as complete separately, you will not get confused about which vehicle is the one to be driven at which point.
※ This article provides general information and is not legal advice on any individual case. Consult a lawyer or other professional about specific situations. Laws may be amended, so check the latest text at the Korea Law Information Center.
