What this letter is
It is the notificación de denuncia (notice of a traffic offence report) for an offence on an interurban road or a road through a town. It is sent by the Jefatura Provincial de Tráfico (provincial traffic office) or the Centro de Tratamiento de Denuncias Automatizadas (automated offence centre, for speed cameras). It starts the penalty procedure. You can still choose: pay with a discount or defend yourself.
How to read it: the key parts
| What you see on the letter | What it means |
|---|---|
| Órgano (issuing body: Jefatura Provincial de Tráfico / Centro de Tratamiento de Denuncias Automatizadas) | Who is fining you. You address your objections to this body. |
| Nº de expediente (case number) | The number that identifies your fine. You need it to pay or object. |
| Hecho denunciado (reported offence) | What offence you are accused of, with place, date and time. |
| Precepto infringido and calificación (leve, grave, muy grave) (rule broken and classification: minor, serious, very serious) | The rule that was broken and how serious it is. |
| Importe and importe con reducción (amount and reduced amount) | The full fine and what you pay with the 50 % discount. |
| Puntos (points) | The licence points you would lose if the penalty becomes final. |
| Matrícula (registration plate) and vehicle details | Check it’s your car: an error here is grounds for objecting. |
| Requerimiento de identificación del conductor (request to identify the driver) | If it appears, they are asking you to say who was driving (see below). |
What deadline you have
You have 20 calendar days from the day after notification (art. 93.1 of the Traffic Act). Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays count.
If the letter arrived in your Dirección Electrónica Vial (DEV) (the DGT’s electronic mailbox), the date is the day you opened it. If you don’t open it within 10 calendar days, it is treated as refused and the procedure carries on anyway.
Example: you receive the letter on 3 March. The period starts on the 4th and ends on 23 March.
What you can do
| Option | When it makes sense | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| Pay with the 50 % discount | If the details are correct and you have no clear ground | The procedure ends on the day you pay. You give up objecting. |
| Submit objections (alegaciones) | If there’s an error, a lack of evidence or the offence has expired | You lose the discount. If they don’t agree with you, you pay 100 %. |
| Identify the driver | If you weren’t driving and they ask you | The fine is redirected to that person. |
| Ask for the case file or the photo | If you have doubts about the facts | It helps you decide within the 20 days. |
| Do nothing | Never | The report can become a penalty and end in enforced collection. |
Note: some offences have no discount (art. 93.2), for example not identifying the driver or carrying radar detectors.
What happens if you do nothing
- For minor offences and many serious ones, if you neither pay nor object, the report counts as the penalty and can be enforced 30 calendar days after notification.
- If the penalty carries points, they are deducted once it’s final.
- Once final, you have one last period of 15 calendar days to pay. After that the vía de apremio (enforced collection) starts, with a surcharge of up to 20 % plus interest, and they can seize your accounts or tax refunds.
Common mistakes
- Counting working days. Here they are calendar days.
- Paying with the discount and then submitting objections: they are treated as not submitted.
- Ignoring DEV alerts thinking they don’t count.
- Appealing without a concrete reason and losing the 50 %.
- Not identifying the driver because you don’t know who it was: the new fine can be double or triple.
How to respond, step by step
- Check the plate, place, date and time. If everything matches, decide whether to pay or object.
- To pay: go to the DGT online portal (sede electrónica) with the case number, or use the payment methods shown in the letter. Keep the receipt.
- To object: on the DGT online portal, with Cl@ve or a digital certificate. You can also use the general electronic registry or any registry or Correos (post office), addressed to the Jefatura named in the letter.
- Include the case number, your details, your argument and the evidence.
- Keep the receipt with the date of entry.
Sample text (write it in Spanish):
Expediente n.º [número]. D./D.ª [nombre], DNI/NIE [número], formulo alegaciones a la denuncia notificada el [fecha]: [motivo concreto, p. ej., la matrícula no corresponde a mi vehículo]. Solicito copia de las pruebas del expediente y el archivo del procedimiento.
(In English: Case no. [number]. I, [name], DNI/NIE [number], submit objections to the offence report notified on [date]: [specific reason, e.g. the registration plate does not match my vehicle]. I request a copy of the evidence in the file and that the procedure be closed.)
Cartamiga tip: if the photo and the details match, paying with the 50 % discount within the 20 days is usually the cheapest option. Only object when you have a concrete reason you can prove.