On an overload, does the operator or the consignor pay

Under Article 65 of the Highway Traffic Law No. 2918, exceeding the maximum laden weight draws a separate administrative fine for the operator and for the consignor, from the same tier. The amounts follow the text written by Law 7574 (12 February 2026).

Other violations split differently. For maximum axle weight only the operator is charged, 10,000 TL; for an out-of-gauge load the operator pays 10,000 TL and the consignor 20,000 TL. Additional Article 3 of the Law raises fines at the start of each calendar year by the revaluation rate, so the amount on a notice may differ from the table. If the excess is above 20 per cent, the vehicle cannot continue until the surplus is unloaded.

The consignor is the person who hands goods to the carrier. The operator is the holder of the authorisation certificate if the vehicle is registered under one; otherwise the vehicle owner, the registered buyer in a sale with retention of title, or, for long-term lease, loan for use or pledge, the lessee, borrower or pledgee. A person who runs another's vehicle on their own account and risk with actual control over it is also an operator (Regulation on Loading Measures and Procedures, Article 4).

When operator and consignor are the same, for example a food producer distributing with its own fleet, a single administrative fine is now charged to the operator. The earlier text provided for the sum of the two fines; the Constitutional Court annulled that paragraph for overloading in its decision of 12 July 2017. Article 6(7) of the Regulation still says "total"; because a law outranks a regulation, the law's text prevails. Where there are several consignors, the sum of the fines goes to the operator.

Where responsibility falls on a rented vehicle is one of the clauses that enters the contract when planning capacity without buying vehicles.