France's vehicle registration fraud costs taxpayers €550 million in two years
A damning report from France's Court of Audit has uncovered a massive failure in the country's vehicle registration system. Known as cartes grises, the scheme has been exploited by criminal networks, costing taxpayers over €550 million in just two years. The investigation reveals how a rush to digitise and privatise the process left the door wide open to fraud.
The problems began in 2017 with the Plan Préfecture Nouvelle Génération, a government push to modernise vehicle registration by moving it entirely online. Responsibility shifted from state officials to more than 30,000 private operators, including garages and dealerships. But the focus on speed and efficiency came at a price: security checks were weakened, and oversight nearly disappeared.
The Court of Audit found that nearly one million vehicles were registered through fake garages, many linked to organised crime. Fraudsters exploited gaps in the Vehicle Registration System (SIV), creating false records and pocketing fees meant for the state. Local and national authorities lost an estimated €550 million between 2022 and 2024 alone.
To fix the damage, the court is demanding urgent changes. It wants the number of private operators with SIV access slashed, limiting permissions to only the most trusted professionals. It has also called for a return to mandatory pre-registration checks, a safeguard that was abandoned years ago.
The report makes clear that the crisis stems from a fundamental flaw: the state traded control for convenience. By handing too much power to private firms without proper checks, it allowed fraud to flourish undetected for years.
The findings put pressure on authorities to overhaul the system before more money is lost. Stricter controls on private operators and restored verification steps are now seen as essential. Without these measures, the risk of further exploitation—and further financial damage—remains high.
