It doesn’t matter if you are alone in the car or travelling with a group

Driver with mask in Dubai. Image Credit: Ahmed Ramzan/ Gulf News

Dubai: Warnings will be issued to motorists who don’t wear masks while driving in Dubai, an official said on Tuesday.

According to Dubai Police, 233 warnings and five fines were issued for not wearing masks in enclosed places and failing to keep a safe distance.

Brigadier Saif Muhair Al Mazroui, Director of Traffic Department at Dubai Police, said the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), Dr Farida Al Hosani, had stressed the importance for everyone to wear masks even if you don’t have symptoms.

“We issued a circular on the importance of wearing masks inside cars,” said Al Mazroui. “Dubai Police issued warning fines to drivers who are not wearing masks while driving as part of the precautionary measures,” he added.

A warning fine is a warning which precedes a fine if the offence is repeated.

Many drivers have received the warning tickets on their mobile phones with a message to adhere to the laws.

The fine for not wearing masks is Dh1,000, according to Dubai Police.

An example of the 'warning fine' sent to motorists by SMS Image Credit: Supplied

“We issued warning fines at the beginning for the public so that people wouldn’t claim that they didn’t know about the order,” he said. “If a person didn’t comply the order then a real fine will be issued.”

The fines will be issued to all drivers regardless of whether they are alone in the car or travelling with others.

Al Mazroui, said that instructions were clear especially when it came to movement restrictions.

He said that violators were exempted on the first day of the sterlisation programme following orders from the country’s leaders.

On Monday, Dubai Police announced that they issued 2,527 fines against violators of the movement restrictions in place during the National Sterilisation Programme.

Dubai Police said that 2,076 warnings and eight fines have been issued to people for violating safety instructions; they left their homes without necessity, i.e. not for work purposes or to buy essentials.

Another 204 warnings and one fine were issued to drivers for exceeding the maximum allowed number of passengers (three).