HONG KONG: A superstitious motorist in eastern China who waited for “an auspicious day” to put number plates on his new Porsche has temporarily lost his driving licence and been fined 200 yuan (US$30).
The driver, surnamed Zhu, was stopped by traffic police officers on a highway in Lishui, Zhejiang province, on Monday night after they noticed his temporary plates had expired on April 26, the Qianjiang Evening News reported.
Zhu told the police he had the new plates in the car, but a fortune-teller had advised him not to put them on straight away
“It is a new car and a fortune-teller told me the plates must not be put up in April,” he was quoted as saying. “I need to wait for an auspicious day, which has not been decided yet, to do that for road safety and a prosperous business.”
Zhu, a businessman, said he was convinced the delay was important.
He then drove the car during the Labour Day public holidays last week, forgetting that the temporary licence had expired.
He was fined and 12 points deducted from his driving licence. He will have to retake a test on China’s traffic rules to get it back. — South China Morning Post
