Anyone else had an overseas speeding fine arrive in the mail?

[Forg]

I've been surprised by how 'cheap' the fines are in NZ. Up to 10km/h over is just $30.

25km/h over is just $170 vs almost $500 in NSW...

About 8 years ago we did a South Island trip ... heading towards the west coast from Queenstown on a very straight road yet with lots of gentle undulations I overtook one of the slow-moving camper-vans that infests the country, but because the clear road ahead before the double-lines wasn't super-duper long I accelerated pretty hard (to be sure I was back on my side of the road while still having clear vision) to get around it before backing-off ... as in I didn't brake once I was past it, just let the car coast back down to the limit.

I was probably still coasting along at about 30km/h above the limit by the time I crested the hill and saw the cop car with the attached radar coming the other way.

In NSW the guy'd have done a u-turn, pulled me over, and either invoiced me the ~$500 you mention or maybe even taken my licence.
In Victoria the guy'd have done a u-turn and shot me.
In South Island New Zealand ... the guy gestured that I should slow down & continued on his way.

 

[NoName]

Received a speeding fine in the mail this morning from when I hired a rental car in Italy three months ago. Anyone else had a speeding fine from overseas turn up in the mail? Clocked at 78kmh in a 70 zone by a camera apparently - considering that it was winter and night time and I was struggling to get google maps to work properly I'm not too surprised that I might have missed seeing a speed sign!

I have, also in Italy back in 2018 (so a while ago). Can’t remember the specifics of the speed etc but was on a motorway around Tuscany and was around €190 from memory. The rental agency (Hertz) had passed on my details to the authorities who had mailed me the ticket. I considered just ignoring it but ultimately decided to pay given it wasn’t a massive amount and I figured I may want to rent a car in Italy again at some point. No idea whether not paying would have actually caused any issues but that was my thinking. I couldn’t see any way to pay online with CC so had to have my bank wire the money.

 

[Cossie]

There have been several posts about this scenario over the years.

I have been caught in Germany 3 times, once you get of the autobahns, speed limits change very often on country roads.

The first time I was sent a letter from the hire company saying they had to give my details to the police, 30 euro for that and the fine as well which was about the same, the banks fees cost more than the fine, only way to pay.
Next time the hire company paid the fine and charged me an administration fee, again about 30 each from memory.

Last time I got a letter from the hire company stating they had given my details to the local authorities, again, about 30 euro, I’m still waiting for them to get in touch, I would have happily paid, but it’s been over w years.

I even had a letter published in The Traveller section of the SMH after an article was printed by one of their columnists.

One person replied that I should pay up, as they would get me eventually. If I haven’t been notified, how can I pay?

I have been back to the EU since, without problems………. so far!

 

[pussycato]

Got one in Switzerland. Avis passed the cost onto us and a fairly hefty fee for processing it.

 

[SYD]

There have been several posts about this scenario over the years.

I have been caught in Germany 3 times, once you get of the autobahns, speed limits change very often on country roads.

The first time I was sent a letter from the hire company saying they had to give my details to the police, 30 euro for that and the fine as well which was about the same, the banks fees cost more than the fine, only way to pay.
Next time the hire company paid the fine and charged me an administration fee, again about 30 each from memory.

Last time I got a letter from the hire company stating they had given my details to the local authorities, again, about 30 euro, I’m still waiting for them to get in touch, I would have happily paid, but it’s been over w years.

I even had a letter published in The Traveller section of the SMH after an article was printed by one of their columnists.

One person replied that I should pay up, as they would get me eventually. If I haven’t been notified, how can I pay

I have been back to the EU since, without problems………. so far!

Yes, I wouldn’t pay if I haven’t received the actual fine. How can you?

But once they send you the fine (by mail or electronic), it’s best to pay IMHO.

 

[trooper]

France for me. Received the paperwork at my home address here...so the Rental company must have passed on my details..but they did NOT pay the fine, nor did they charge any admin fee. The fine was quite low by Aussie standards.... lol... and I was still eligible for the "Discounted early payment" amount... As I do want to go back sometime I just paid it. Online, English language option, very simple.

 

[VPS]

I got a £60 notice from Sixt for driving in a bus lane in Cambridge UK but never got the fine from Cambridge city council

 

[ayebee]

Had a few situations...
Parked a rental outside a hotel in central London for a few minutes while checking in and came out to find a ticket on screen. Tore it up and never heard of it again.

Got charge from rental company for providing details to authorities for a speeding ticket (camera) in town in Brittany, Didn't bother challenging payment & never received the actual penalty from French police (or their civil penalties office).

Got admin charge from rental for infringement in restricted area in Pisa, again providing details. Subsequently got the ticket in mail. Was not huge, so paid it as planned more visits to Italy.

Got ticket from Swiss police for a speeding infringement out of blue. No charge from rental company for admin though. The problem was it was for date I was not in Switzerland, but it was exactly a year out, so probably a typo. I contacted them to advise this & they weren't interested.
I didn't want to be "of interest" to Swiss authorities, so started a process to get the rental company to correct the obvious mistake. That took quite an effort until I managed to contact a more senior manager. They updated the driver details and I got a very begrudging letter of clearance from Swiss police.

 

[Mattg]

This one doesn't even give me the option of paying by credit card - they want it paid by bank transfer - and because I didn't pay it within 14 days because I didn't receive it until 19 days after it was issued the fine has already gone up!

I haven't received a fine from driving overseas (*touch wood*) but a friend got one from Portugal. The notice came by mail, months after the alleged traffic infringement, and was only in Portuguese. Of course, the deadline for payment had already passed long before the letter arrived, so the fine had increased substantially.

It seems a bit unfair when these notices come through by mail and the payment deadlines are so short that the mail hasn't even arrived yet by the time the deadline passes.

 

[RSD]

I haven't received a fine from driving overseas (*touch wood*) but a friend got one from Portugal. The notice came by mail, months after the alleged traffic infringement, and was only in Portuguese. Of course, the deadline for payment had already passed long before the letter arrived, so the fine had increased substantially.

It seems a bit unfair when these notices come through by mail and the payment deadlines are so short that the mail hasn't even arrived yet by the time the deadline passes.

Yes - I'm just going to pay the reduced amount and see what happens...

 

[SYD]

Yes - I'm just going to pay the reduced amount and see what happens...

If you pay, nothing else will happen. You can sleep easy!

 

[Seat0B]

This thread is making me nervous. We accidentally infringed a restricted zone in Córdoba Spain in December and so far have not heard anything about it. But seems like it might be too early to declare it over and fine with.

 

[TheRealTMA]

It used to be in Italy, for example, and by EU laws, that the offender had to receive written notification of the infringement from the legal authority within 360 days of the offence. If not received within this time, the fine becomes invalid.

Not sure if this EU law still applies.

Suggest to not pay until you receive an official notice, but hire company will charge you for supplying details to the legal authority.

 

[SYD]

This thread is making me nervous. We accidentally infringed a restricted zone in Córdoba Spain in December and so far have not heard anything about it. But seems like it might be too early to declare it over and fine with.

Ignorance is bliss! If no one reaches out, don’t fret.

They do have your address, DL and PP details, so if you don’t hear anything within 3 to 6 mths, I suspect you’ve reached a relative “statute of limitations”….