3rd November 2026 – (Hong Kong) New Territories North traffic officers today arrested a 50-year-old mainland man on a two-way permit after an undercover booking of a dual-plated luxury seven-seater advertised for a Tin Shui Wai-to-Huizhou run at 1,500 yuan renminbi.
Police said cross-border “white-plate” hire cars — private vehicles taking passengers for reward without the proper permits — have been proliferating online. Officers from the New Territories North Traffic Enforcement and Control Task Force found intermediary accounts on social platforms, including Xiaohongshu, touting Hong Kong-registered dual-plated luxury vans to mainland cities via various land crossings.
Posing as passengers, officers messaged one Xiaohongshu account seeking a ride from Tin Shui Wai to Huizhou. The contact quoted 1,500 yuan and asked for part payment up front, with the balance due before the journey ended. Today officers boarded the locally registered dual-plated seven-seater. After the trip began they identified themselves and arrested the driver on suspicion of using a motor vehicle for illegal hire or carriage of passengers for reward, using a vehicle without third-party insurance, and breaching conditions of stay. He is being held for inquiries; further arrests are not ruled out. The car has been towed away for examination. Officers said the suspect holds a Hong Kong driving licence and that the vehicle belongs to a friend.
Senior Inspector Man Kit of the task force urged the public to use lawful public transport and not illegal hire services. When a vehicle is used for unlicensed carriage for reward, third-party cover may be void, leaving passengers, pedestrians and other road users unprotected after a crash. Drivers were likewise warned not to offer illegal hire or reward carriage.
Under the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap. 374), unless a vehicle holds a valid hire-car permit or meets ride-hailing licence rules, no one may drive, use or allow it to be used for hire or reward. A first conviction attracts a maximum fine of HK$10,000 and six months’ jail; a subsequent conviction up to HK$25,000 and 12 months. A convicted driver also faces disqualification for at least 12 months and up to three years. The Commissioner for Transport may temporarily suspend the vehicle licence and order it into custody — six months on a first conviction, 12 on a second — and, for cross-boundary vehicles, cancel the closed-road permit for breach of its conditions.
Where mainland drivers are involved, police will also examine illegal employment or other immigration offences and prosecute if evidence allows. Mainland authorities likewise regulate passenger carriage for reward; operating there without the required qualifications can bring separate action. Officers said drivers on both sides of the boundary should not take chances with the law.