In Montenegro, from July 1, the import of cars older than 15 years will be prohibited. The decision comes in a country where almost two-thirds of vehicles were manufactured before 2009, and the chances of them causing accidents are high.

Clarifying the ban on the entry of old cars, the Ministry of Transport said that from July the vehicles will have better technical characteristics, which will make them safer. In response to this decision, the import of used cars increased dramatically.

In the first three months of this year, 35% more cars were imported than in the same period last year. Compared to the same period of 2022, the increase in imports has exceeded 100%, according to the data of the customs department.

Montenegro has the most cars per capita among countries in the region, according to data from the European statistics office, Eurostat. In the country with slightly more than 630 thousand inhabitants, about 285 thousand vehicles are registered, of which 242 thousand are small private vehicles. Apart from two-thirds of those older than 15 years, about one-tenth are cars manufactured between 1979 and 1999.

In the last five years, the number of traffic accidents has increased by almost 30%. Only in 2023 it has increased by almost 16% compared to 2022.