Study shows penalty fares for Europe-bound travellers in wake of Euro 2016 violence

Stade Vélodrome, where Russia and England supporters clashed last week ahead of their nations' game in Marseille. Image credit: Challengeputeaux/Creative Commons

A study has shown the cost disparities of misbehaving abroad, following the trouble marring the start of the European Championships in France this month.

The information, put together by money-saving website Voucherbox and travel comparison website GoEuro, examined the discrepancies in penalties for several different offences across 18 European cities.

Ranging from a slap on the wrist to an eye watering £7,746, the findings are worth bearing in mind for Brits heading to the continent’s major metropolitan destinations.

That includes football fans going to Paris and other French cities for the 2016 European Championships, where five England supporters have already been sentenced to jail time for anti-social behaviour in addition to the violence preceding the Three Lions’ game with Russia.

According to the study titled ‘The cost of misbehaving abroad,’ travellers heading to Italy’s capital may want to be careful what they get up to ‘when in Rome,’ as urination in a public place could result in a fine of over seven-and-a-half thousand pounds.

The hefty fee levied for people caught short skyrockets the Eternal City into first place overall for penalty fares, even when factoring in the other four offences – drinking alcohol in the street, smoking in a restricted area, being drunk and disorderly and taking public transport without a ticket.

Berlin are the least strict when it comes to taking a leak on their streets, charging only £16 for rule flouters – a massive £7,730 difference when compared with Rome.

Dublin is the place not to get caught smoking somewhere you shouldn’t, with a fine of £2,324 – the city’s biggest fine which puts it in second place for the most expensive place to misbehave,

For those travelling to Euro 2016, fans will be surprised to learn that they may only receive a yellow card with a total of just under £300 in fines possible from ticking off all five offences - hardly maxing out the credit card.

London, which has the third most expensive public transportation out of the cities on this list behind both Copenhagen and Stockholm, has the biggest fine for using their systems without a ticket, charging offenders up to £1,000 pounds.

Icelandic capital Reykjavik have a different approach, however, only asking those on public transport without a ticket to disembark at the next stop without any financial penalty; the leanest action out of all results surveyed.

In fact, Reykjavik came at the bottom of the list, only charging a total of £54 in fines for smoking and urinating in public, while jail time until sober is the punishment for those drunk and disorderly.

Reykjavik is also one of eight cities, alongside Berlin, Bern, Brussels, Copenhagen, Lisbon, Paris and Vienna, where drinking alcohol in the street is actually permitted.

Shane Forster, County Manager for Voucherbox UK, stated, “This study reveals a huge disparity in penalties across Europe.

The study by Voucherbox.co.uk and GoEuro.com makes for interesting reading.

“With European cities a popular destination this year for football and festivals, it’s good to make sure you’re aware of the rules beforehand so you don’t get any unexpected surprises – some of which may be more expensive than the cost of your whole trip.

“Of course the best way to guarantee you don’t slip up is to avoid these acts in the first place.”

Voucherbox.co.uk is a money saving website dedicated to finding its customers ‘the best free voucher codes, discount codes and promotional deals every day.’

While GoEuro.com is a travel search platform that allows customers to search and book rail, bus and air transport across Europe.