Who decides
Penalties are given by the stewards, a group of three or four people at each race. They only penalise when it is clear a driver was wholly or mainly to blame. Almost no race penalty can be appealed.
During the race
- 5 or 10 seconds
- Served at the next pit stop: the driver waits that long before the team can touch the car. If they do not stop again, the time is added to their final result.
- Drive-through
- The driver must go through the pit lane without stopping, respecting the speed limit. They have two laps to serve it.
- Stop-and-go
- The driver must enter the pits and stay still for 10 seconds, with nobody working on the car. They also have two laps.
If a drive-through comes in the last three laps or after the race, it becomes 20 seconds. A stop-and-go becomes 30.
Outside the race
- Grid places
- The driver starts further back. It is the usual penalty in qualifying and for using too many engine parts: 10 places the first time and 5 after that.
- Pit lane start
- The car starts from the pit lane, behind everyone.
- Reprimand
- A formal warning. With five in a season, if at least four were for driving, the driver loses 10 grid places.
- Fine
- A financial penalty for the driver or the team. It is common for pit lane speeding in practice.
- Disqualification
- The driver loses their result. It usually happens when a car does not meet the technical rules.
- Suspension
- The driver misses the next race.
Licence points
As well as the penalty, stewards can add points to a driver's licence for dangerous behaviour. They are separate from championship points.
- Each point expires after 12 months.
- With 12 points, the driver is suspended for one race.
- After the suspension, those 12 points are removed.
- A reprimand or a fine does not add points.
The usual penalty for each offence
| Race offence | Usual penalty | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Causing a collision | 10 s | Up to 3 |
| Deliberate or reckless collision | Stop-and-go or over 30 s | 4 |
| Forcing a driver off track | 10 s | 0 |
| Gaining an advantage off track | 10 s | 0 |
| Track limits | Flag on the third, 5 s from the fourth | 0 |
| Ignoring a single yellow | 10 s or drive-through | Up to 3 |
| Ignoring a double yellow | Stop-and-go | Up to 3 |
| Ignoring a red flag | Stop-and-go or disqualification | Up to 4 |
| Ignoring a blue flag | 5 or 10 s, or drive-through | 0 |
| Pit speeding up to 6 km/h over | 5 s | 0 |
| Pit speeding 6 to 15 km/h over | Drive-through | 0 |
| Pit speeding over 15 km/h over | Stop-and-go | 0 |
| Jump start | 5 s to stop-and-go, depending on the excess | 0 |
This is an official guide, not a fixed table: stewards can lower or raise a penalty depending on the case.
How each penalty is served
The 5 and 10-second penalties are paid in the pits. The car stops in its place, waits out the full time with nobody touching it, and only then can the mechanics work. If the driver is not going to stop again, they come in just to serve it or the time is added at the end.
The drive-through and stop-and-go are much harsher, because they force a trip through the pits and the loss of about 20 more seconds. The driver can cross the line only twice before serving them. They cannot do so while the safety car or virtual safety car is on track, and those laps do not count.
And if they retire before serving it, the stewards can carry it over to the next race as grid places.
Track limits, a very common penalty
The track has white lines along each side. If a driver crosses them with all four wheels, they are deemed to have left the track. In qualifying the lap is deleted. In a race this is what happens:
- The first few times, only the time of that lap is deleted.
- On the third, the black and white flag is shown as a warning.
- From the fourth, a 5-second penalty is applied.
It may seem minor, but it is one of the penalties that affects results most. Five seconds added at the end can cost several positions. Also, if a driver gains an advantage off the track, for example passing a rival on the asphalt run-off area, the usual penalty is 10 seconds. That is why they often give the place back right away.
Grid penalties: how they are applied
If a driver has penalty places, they are added to their qualifying result. A driver who was fourth with 5 places starts ninth, and the others move up to fill the gap.
If they build up more than 15 places, they go straight to the back of the grid. That is why, when a team knows its driver will start last, it often takes the chance to change several parts at once at the same race.
If the penalty could not be served for some reason, it can carry over to the next race. We explain the limits on engine parts in the article on the cars and their batteries.
Real cases
- Kevin Magnussen, 2024
- He was the first driver to reach 12 licence points under this system. He was suspended for the Azerbaijan GP and Oliver Bearman took his place at Haas.
- George Russell, Belgium 2024
- He won the race on track, but his car came in under the minimum weight in the post-race check. He was disqualified and the win went to Lewis Hamilton.
- Hamilton and Leclerc, China 2025
- Both Ferrari cars were disqualified after the race for breaking different technical rules, one for wear and the other for weight.
These cases show two things. First, penalties apply to everyone, winners included. Second, a result is only final when the technical checks are over.
Can a penalty be appealed?
Almost never. The rules do not allow appeals against time penalties, drive-throughs, stop-and-gos, grid penalties for engine parts or those given in qualifying. The reason is practical: a race result cannot stay open for weeks.
There is an alternative, called the right of review. A team can ask the stewards to review their decision, but only if a new and significant element appears that was not known when it was taken.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays the fines?
It depends on the offence. It can be the team or the driver. For example, speeding in the pit lane during practice is fined at 100 euros per km/h, up to 1,000 euros.
Do licence points affect the championship?
Not directly. They are something else. But reaching 12 means missing a race, and that does cost a lot of points.
Who decides whether it was someone's fault or a racing accident?
The stewards. If they consider that nobody was to blame, they declare it a racing incident and there is no penalty. That is why not every collision ends in a penalty.