Carolyn Rodriguez-Dondero.is livid she's in collections after she says she wasn't warned she even had violations. This time, I was sure to sign and date the form and directed someone to call me to discuss this since I cant reach any E-Z Pass CS rep by phone. Because of this mistake, Hertz offered to waive the toll amount and administrative fee "to help make this right and retain your future business.". "What steps must I take to get a response to a complaint?" "We cannot process your request at this time," an E-ZPass email response said. Certain hotels have resort fees. You will find stories of people who received multiple letters and havent faced any consequences yet. he asked. But we're hearing from scores of consumers who are are saying it's a big loss for them after getting hit with fines in the thousands - facing collections - even after some say they've paid the tolls. 5 ForgetfulFrolicker 2 yr. ago Nope, you can PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- E-Z Pass is not going This same day I drafted and sent copies of my original payment and violation stubs and noted again on Section B that I was submitting proof of toll payment and continue to dispute the $50/ea Administration fee(s). Karin Price Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. WebEz Pass Violation Dispute Letter Sample. Sometimes, people try to file a claim because theyve been wrongfully convicted, but these cases rarely get solved. "It is apparent that E-ZPass is a three-ring circus with no ringleader," he wrote. Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. DE Department of Transportations toll violations (not paying toll/going through ez pass without $ on account) used to charge the $1.00 toll and a $10 fee admin fee for running the toll. A Thrifty agent said the same thing. I got the bill just in time to protest it before the charge automatically applied to the credit card on file. He tried it out on Dec. 29, and again, the tool booth said "toll unpaid," so that made for violation notice No. This is highway robbery," he said. Fifty cents times five thousand percent will give e - z pass the twenty five dollars violation charge. The amnesty program is structured to collect at least as much as the state collects annually in toll debtand collect debts that otherwise might go unpaid. They will have 60 days from the date of the letter to settle toll debts. For example, those with 10 or fewer violations can pay a $60 amnesty fee plus the cost of the original tolls instead of the administrative fee and civil penalties. WebIf you use the Tag in a vehicle other than one of the class for which the Tag is designated, you may incur administrative fees of up to $100 per occurrence and/or be asked to The administrative fee may be waived for first time offenders if the missed toll payment is made promptly. You should never use your transponder in a vehicle type other than the one you initially requested such as a car transponder in a tractor-trailer. I have one friend who is being charged over $15,000 of tolls and only $3,000 of that amount is the actual toll amount and the rest is all fees! Is this where the problem began? EZ-Pass is not going to just waive your fees, you can forget about that. There is a non-toll route to and from the airport that he left out of his sales pitch for the company's "all-inclusive" toll pass. He then received another suspension warning about an Oct. 14 violation. I am filing this complaint here, mostly to vent and intend to send this same letter to NJ E-Z Pass and Credit Collection Services, The Better Business Bureau, and am considering sending it to NJ Governor Phil Murphy. Happy Holidays. All rights reserved (About Us). He called E-ZPass to make sure he was writing to the correct address, and he was given a different one. And it usually takes some time for the tolling agency to check the plate. Violation notices ramped up in 2014 and 2015, and Vuolo would answer each notice. 375 Mccarter Hwy. EZ-Pass to Refund 80,000 Administrative Fees Charged During COVID-19 Pandemic. Look for information across the internet. "If you replenish your E-Z Pass they take the balance (due) at replenish," remarks Brienza. Even if the system has been widely used for over thirty years, people often commit mistakes. If you think youve been wrongfully accused of an E-ZPass violation, please contact your areas customer service center to start solving your case. It also promised to waive all initial first time violation fees once it's received full payment for tolls owed. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Google Maps, Waze and other mapping apps give you the option of only taking routes without tolls. Based in Virginia, USA. Commonwealth of Virginia. We're hearing from scores of consumers who are saying cashless tolling is a big loss for them after getting hit with fines in the thousands - facing collections - even after some s. NEW YORK (WABC) -- Cashless tolling seems like a win-win. Here's an an example. If you incur a toll fine of $20 and a $50 administrative fee, your total charge will be $70. "It's a malfunction and maybe there should be an apology letter instead of a violation.". The toll fee would be assessed and the administrative fee was waived, again and again. ABC7 New York 24/7 Eyewitness News Stream. Susan Quitzau. Our editorial policy at TPG is not to accept free travel from providers, so I declined the offer. Receive 1 Free Night Award every year after your Card renewal month. The fee is automatically waived on first-time notices if the toll is paid by the due date. Plus, your own feed of TPG content. When the toll plaza doesn't get a signal from a transponder, it will default to checking the license plate. To do this, make sure that the rental car's transponder isn't active, pass through the toll and then search the applicable tolling agency to pay the toll amount before it's billed to the vehicle owner by mail. My wife Katie and I were renting the car for a week but we would only need to use the toll pass twice -- once leaving the airport and another time returning to the airport. EZ PASS NY Every single day EZ Pass is taking advantage of customers, either their machines at I could not reach a human being to discuss and resolve this problem. Vuolo got a call on Jan. 7 from a customer service rep who said her office reviewed his complaints "with a fine-toothed comb.". The State of New York does not imply approval of the listed destinations, warrant the accuracy of any information set out in those destinations, or endorse any opinions expressed therein. Each time he answered a violation, it showed the toll fee was charged to his account -- his account was always in good standing -- and the administrative fee was waived. Choose, Click here to enroll Emails didn't get attention to his problem, either. PREVIOUS REPORTING:$200 in fees for $3 in tolls and potential jail time. He said the rep believed the positioning of Vuolo's transponder may have been the reason the transponder didn't register. However, we can tell you thestandard price for it is $50. The July 27, 2015 letter, sent certified mail, return receipt requested, noted the 10 violations he had received so far, plus the double charge from June, and Vuolo asked for a replacement transponder. The check or money order must be made out to the U.S. Treasury. When I reserved the Dollar rental car, the company didn't disclose the price for its toll-pass rental. To come back in, there's tolls. I looked through the bills I had initially received and confirmed by my posted check that I had paid and E-Z Pass had received my payment. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. However, the spokesperson conceded that "they did not process this refund appropriately." He was wrong. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). First, you should know that there is a low probability of you receiving an Administrative Fee Waived Letter if you havent started a dispute with your violation. The agent told us that the rate is applied to the entire week-long rental period no matter the number of times the toll pass is actually used. Choose which state you live in. First, make sure the transponder is mounted in the proper location. Since you do have an EZpass now it is quite easy to have the fee waived. If that wasn't bad enough, every time he tried to correct the situation in writing with E-ZPass, he was ignored. -Once the transaction becomes a "violation", a notice is sent that includes a $50 administrative fee - this fee often get waived as a one-time courtesy, with every case being unique. This E-Z Pass by design is setup to produce revenue, not serve its tax payers and visitors. E-ZPass Customer Agreement Terms and What do I do? This complaint was posted by a verified customer. If you have an E-ZPass account, but don't have the transponder with you, a National rental-car agent recommended that renters associate the rental car license plate with your existing E-ZPass account for the length of the rental. You dont have to pay money, and you dont owe because you did not commit an offense in the first place. Another option for cash-paying customers Now accepting cash to replenish your E-ZPass at these participating locations: 2017 Virginia Department of Transportation | She noted that the rental car desk agent was slightly off when quoting a charge of $18.50 amount for passing through the Boston tolls once. Links may open in a new window. For additional information, please visit the E-ZPass website: www.e-zpassny.com, This page is available in other languages, P.O Box 149001, Staten Island, NY 10314-9001. "The state should fix the malfunctioning intermittent toll booth plate reading unit or deduct the error amount automatically from my account," he wrote. Discounts on many of the roadways offering E-ZPass including the New York State Thruway Authority, MTA Bridges and Tunnels, New York State Bridge Authority and Port Authority of NY&NJ crossings, Saves fuel, while reducing congestion and emissions, You will receive your tags and account profile in 5-7 days, Credit Card or Checking Account Information which you will use to fund the account. ComplaintsBoard.com is a leading complaint resolution website on the Internet. You'll earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year, and receive automatic Gold elite status. "I just got a letter yesterday that says if I don't pay by the 26th, they're going to suspend my registration. They reported back that Mr. Voulo's letters were processed incorrectly after they were scanned into the system, Feeney said. Contact Brandon Holveck at [email protected]. I understood a fee would be due if payment was not made by due date. Car to a pickup truck with four tires is acceptable. Refer to this step by step process to sign up for an E-ZPass: Buy an E-ZPass at an On-the-Go Retail Location. account with another toll agency. Finally, after getting several violation notices in July 2015, Vuolo went beyond answering the violation notices and he wrote his first complaint letter. Carolyn said that didn't happen in her case. Danielle Leigh and the 7 On Your Side Investigates team at Eyewitness News want to hear from you! WebThe E-ZPass Customer Service Representatives will review your explanation and determine if this is an inadvertant unpaid transaction per New Hampshire E-ZPass Rules & Waiver Letter for Payment Name of Sender Address of Sender City, State, Zip Code DATE RE: Bank or Loan Account Number To Whom It May Concern: This letter is a formal request to have my monthly payments of $150 on my car loan frozen and have all late fees waived for six months from DATE to DATE. If you prefer to receive an application in the mail, complete the form below. Rent an E-ZPass: $9.99 per rental day before taxes/fees which covers the cost of the tolls. "They're still sending you a bill for the toll and the violation. The only flaw I found is that I neglected to sign below the explanation of dispute I had included. So Vuolo wrote to E-ZPass again on Dec. 14, detailing his long saga of wrongful violations and unanswered communications. If the account is not replenished within this period, a violation notice is issued for the toll plus a $50 or $100 fee per transaction, depending upon the facility, and the customer has 30 days to pay. A close-up of Ralph Vuolo's E-ZPass transponder. Customer can login to their account at. No problem. How do I get additional mounting strips? Whenever this happens, you will receive a toll violation notice that requires you to pay an administrative fee (for the infraction) and the tolls total cost. They're double dipping, they're getting paid two times," he said. We also highly recommend our customers who make one-time payments to closely monitor their E-ZPass account and usage, so that they can sufficiently replenish and fund their E-ZPass account to match their usage. On July 31, Vuolo received two more violation notices. Transponders will not be active immediately. If a State Trooper is monitoring speed through the toll lanes, and you exceed the posted speed through the. Please click (https://www.ezpassva.com) here to navigate to our Production site. Dollar Car Rental Charged Me $59.99 For a Single $1.75 Toll Here's How To Avoid The Same Fate, This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. WebPlease contact the E-ZPass Service Center at once to update your account information and receive instructions on how to correct the problem at 1-888-860-9361. Still in its infancy in our area, it has reduced traffic, commuting times, and vehicle emissions, making it good for the environment. All Rights Reserved. And again. WebTo dispute the administrative fees, the customer will need to print, sign, and date the back of the violation notices and why she is not responsible for paying the administrative "It appears that E-ZPass is bordering on misfeasance or nonfeasance," he wrote. In less than two months, an unpaid $1 toll can balloon to a charge of $88.50. Vuolo wrote again, but this time via a paper letter. Ralph Vuolo stands with his car. The Business Application Package including: Application Form. However, even if thats what happened to them, your case may not end up the same. On 8/29/22 I received another Prompt Attention bill. Faxes were not answered. $200 in fees for $3 in tolls. This is not true either. Will you do the same? If it has, the toll will post to the customer account at the E-ZPass rate and no violation notice is sent. That's what's Suffolk resident Bill Brienza has nicknamed his E-Z Pass. Anyone with outstanding toll violations incurred onRoute 1 or I-95 from Jan. 1, 2014, to April 30, 2020, is eligible to participate in the program. To better keep track of an E-ZPass account and to avoid situations like these, we highly recommend that our E-ZPass customers sign up for Mobile Alerts, where they can receive low balance notifications via email or text.". Call 1-800-333-8655 or visit the E-ZPass website. E-ZPass users are charged $1.75 for each toll. Other oddities happened with Vuolo's transponder. Administrative Fee Amount; COLEMAN BRIDGE: $1.50: DULLES TOLL ROAD: $0.00: I-64 EXPRESS: $1.50: I66 INSIDE BELTWAY: $1.50: Vuolo tried to get an answer online on Dec. 4. "If I could give a big hug right now, I would," said Brienza. Who do I contact? Please view our advertising policy page for more information. "It appears that E-ZPass has a completely different approach, which is signing for letters and then ignoring them," Vuolo wrote. I looked up the nearest physical NJ E-Z Pass Customer Service location (an hour away in Newark, NJ) hoping to make an appointment. We'll run a soft credit check to find special offers, but it wont affect your credit score. Enjoy Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status with your Card. Each toll violation results in the following: A civil penalty surcharge of $12.50 is added if the toll violation remains unpaid after 42 days. If you desire to not use your transponder, you must remove it from the windshield/license plate and place it in the metallic "read prevent" bag that came with it or you can leave it at home. Now accepting donations to DRIVE SMART Virginia Education Fund. The cost to pay by plate is $2.05 per toll. Vuolo wrote his third letter, again explaining the problem and asking for a new transponder. About640,000 vehicles have unpaid toll violations, according to the state. On 8/22/22 I called and called the phone number the E-Z Pass statement and online provide to me for Customer Service/violation. WebInvoice Payment Administrative/Late Fees - $5.00 to $20.00 Statement Fee One-Time Special Request Mailed or Faxed: $3.00 (available for up to 6 prior months) Monthly Mailed Statements $2.00/month for paper statements (Private Accounts) $5.00/month for paper statements (Commercial Accounts) Commercial Surety Bond They will require between 48 and 72 hours to be activated. The deal is civil penalties and administrative fees will be waived if the driver pays the original toll We're glad this was corrected, but it's a shame it took so long. ps - Obligation or not, personally, a $50 violation because of a mistake by a relative wouldn't bother me. BALTIMORE, MD (April 27, 2022) Two months after the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) Board approved a new Customer Assistance Plan, the agency is continuing to offer a civil penalty waiver grace period for customers who pay their unpaid Video Tolls by 11:59 p.m. November 30, 2022. Terms and Conditions Apply. Some of them are not even taken seriously. We drove around the toll on the way out of the airport, but we came back to the airport through the tunnel, which charges tolls. If anyone on our team wouldnt recommend it to a friend or a family member, we wouldnt recommend it on The Points Guy either. This way, you will avoid many headaches in the future and spending unnecessary money. Every once in a while something goes kablooey with an E-ZPass transponder. Your application may have been lost. That, Vuolo's records show, was paid on Oct. 31. Vuolo even received several notices threatening a suspension of his registration. Depending on your overall financial situation, filing a Chapter 7 may be the easiest way Still, getting multiple toll violation notices in the same year can be pretty expensive. If toll roads are unavoidable or worth the extra cost, the easiest way to avoid toll convenience fees is to bring your own E-ZPass with you. The Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex is a stacked card with a rewards rate that will help you earn bonus points on everyday and business-related purchases. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. The rental car companies are happy to rent a toll pass to customers and charge absurd fees for providing the "convenience.". That carried a fine totaling $2500 - a mark-up of more than 2300%. If not, we'll let you know what Vuolo has to report. This review was chosen algorithmically as the most valued customer feedback. Privacy Policy Awards can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points) at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy. "I believe if someone was paying attention, 15 false violations would set off some bells as to a problem with either the toll booth's plate reader or my vehicle unit.". I called them and they waived the fees. Copyright 2023 WABC-TV. The $50 administrative fee will be applied to the toll fines and other charges incurred by an E-ZPass user who violates the terms and conditions of the E-ZPass system. The people in collections say they have no way of waiving the fee; however, that is a complete lie and these collection agencies and EZ Pass New York are taking advantage of people with these cash less toll lanes and hitting people with over thousands of dollars in toll fees which they won't waive which is unfair especially if your an EZ Pass account holder. I was told to send fifty dollars and the two dollars in tolls and they would waive a one time deal of twenty five dollars. "They're saying I owe them $2500," complains Brienza. Our experience in Boston was emblematic of just how annoying the situation has become -- especially in Boston where the easiest ways to get to or from the airport are via a toll tunnel or bridge. "They've changed their procedure and are providing additional training to the employees involved to make sure it doesn't happen again," Feeney said. "He had every right to expect a response to his letters, and we failed to provide one.". What happens if I use my transponder when the balance in my account is $0.00 or less? Share your photos and videos with others to prove the truth of your words. Both customers were granted a one time courtesy and had nearly 6 grand in penalties dismissed. Brienza recently got socked with thousands in fines after his account balance went into the negative. WebIf you use the Tag when your bank account has insufficient funds and payment is not made by means of your back-up credit card, you may incur administrative fees of up to $50 per occurrence; be charged the full, undiscounted charge; and/or be asked to surrender the Tag to E-ZPass via certified mail or to plaza personnel. WebContact Information. It turns out the return receipt for his Oct. 22 letter was never returned. And it's already generating big bucks in profit for agencies that run it - like the MTA, which oversees E-Z Pass on bridges and tunnels in New York City. With tolls in and out of the airport costing just $1.75 each for passenger vehicles, Dollar's policy was effectively that we had to pay $60 for $3.50 in tolls. Yes - as long as all the vehicles are of the same classification for toll purposes. DO YOU NEED A STORY INVESTIGATED? Here Vuolo holds the 25th notice, and laid out before him are the other 24. They will have 60 days from the date of the letter to settle toll debts. E-Z Pass says Brienza owed $108 in unpaid tolls. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com'sweekly e-newsletter. I recently received a Vuolo contacted the United States Postal Service to make sure the letters were received. transponder today. I know some of you may say $50 is not a lot of money; however, it's the same money I need to replenish my account and with our economy, money isn't easy to make and I work hard for my money. Average of 129 Customer Reviews. In the time since I got the $100 in toll violation fees, I got EZPass and got a transponder, so I hoped the toll could just get charged to my new EZPass and the fees it is completely unfair for us hard-working New Yorkers that work eight hours a day or more trying to survive and taking care of our families being forced to pay these high toll amounts which is something that we are adjusted to and used to doing but with these fees on top of that how are we supposed to get to work and how are we supposed to pay our bills when most of our money is going to EZ Pass ?? Mobile Alerts sends notifications for low balances, failed payments, successful replenishments, increased replenishment amounts, and payment method expirations.