Single EU market after Poland: Punctured tires on Czech cars are on the rise

The latest attacks in front of several supermarkets in Křenovice took place at the end of last week. Czech drivers sought help from tire service centers in Rohov, Dolní Benešov and Ostrava. The unknown perpetrator probably wants to let the Czechs know that queues form in stores because of them and that goods are often bought on sale.

One of them was Josef Dembek from Bolatice in the Opava region. “We knew that there were attacks in Poland, people are talking about it a lot here now. We went there anyway. First, the wife went to Dino’s to get some things and said she would rather go in alone and let me watch the car. Then we crossed over to Stokrotka and went to the butcher. I already told myself that nothing could happen, but it was a mistake,” said Dembek, adding that he only discovered at home that his right front tire was leaking air. “I immediately went to the service center in nearby Zábřeh. When I got there, the bike was almost on the rim. When they inflated it and threw it into the water, they found that there were six tiny holes in the side. It’s infuriating, I just bought new winter tires this year,” said Dembek.

Kateřina Hrubá, a teacher from a primary school in nearby Sudice, also had a similar experience. She was in Křenovice on Friday, going shopping on her way home from work. “I heard about what was happening, so I parked as close as possible to the entrance. There was a line inside, so I stayed there for maybe twenty minutes. On the way home, after about six kilometers, the low tire pressure warning light came on. The damage amounts to four thousand crowns, so the purchase was quite expensive for me,” added the woman.

The head of the tire service from Rohov, Petr Pospěch, confirmed that cases are increasing. He already had to help several drivers from the surrounding villages. The problem is that, according to Polish law, criminal proceedings for vandalism can only be initiated after one of the drivers files an official criminal complaint.

As Joanna Wiśniewska, spokeswoman for the police in Ratiboř, Poland, said, none of the Czech motorists has yet come to report property damage. According to her, the police were in contact with one person. “But this person did not want to file a report, so we are not conducting any investigation,” said Wiśniewska.

There are several reasons why Czech drivers do not report tire damage. In addition to the language barrier, it is the fact that they usually find out about tire damage only after returning to the Czech Republic. The perpetrator apparently relies on this, which is why he uses a very thin tool for the injections. Fears that drawing up a protocol with the Polish police would take a lot of time also play a role.