'I thought everything was taken care of,' driver cries as she's hit with extra $65 late fee despite paying fine on time | TAO0J17 | 2024-05-03 12:08:01
A DRIVER has fumed after being slapped with late fees despite paying her fine on time and admitting she knew the rules.
Pamela Moes from San Diego was left "frustrated and a little angry" after being hit with an additional fee of $65 on top of a parking fine of $52.20.
In November 2019, Moes parked up in Pacific Beach to go for a walk, leaving her vehicle in a street-sweeping zone, according to KGTV.
Moes was hoping she would get out of a ticket as a truck was blocking the "No Parking" sign at the time.
However, she admitted to the outlet, "It's no excuse. I knew the rules."
The driver was fined $52.50 for the violation and she immediately went home to write the check and mail it.
However, she then got a notice from the City stating that her payment had not yet been received.
Moes then canceled the initial check and visited the local Parking Administration office to pay the fine in person to ensure that the payment was made.
"I thought okay now everything was taken care of. Now I really don't have to worry about anything," Moes told the news outlet.
However, this was not the case as she then received another notice in the mail in December 2019 issuing a late fee.
While the ticket had been paid she was told she owed the city $65 for missing the initial deadline.
"I was angry. I was frustrated and angry," she told KGTV.
<!-- End of Brightcove Player --> "I couldn't believe it because I paid it in person! That makes absolutely no sense."
According to the news outlet, the mix-up occurred when the processing center in Inglewood assessed a late fee when the check she had canceled could not be deposited.
The processing center was unaware that Moes had already paid the fee in person after being told her initial check had not been received.
<!--googleoff: all--> <blockquote class="article__quote"> </blockquote> <!--googleon: all--> "How is this happening?" Moes asked.
"They have to be talking to one another. There has to be some communication."
It was not just Moes who received a late fee for a fine she had already paid.
'BROKEN'
A fellow driver who paid her fine early reportedly got a late fee and the city blamed the delays in processing on new equipment and "connectivity issues" at the Inglewood center, according to KGTV.
"The system is broken and it's not right and it's not fair to people who are doing the right thing," Moes said.
A spokesperson told the news outlet that the city would be looking into the issue and would assess Moes' situation.
The city issued the following statement to KGTV about similar parking ticket stories in the area:
"Check payments are processed by a third-party vendor located in Inglewood, Calif.
"The average processing time in calendar year 2019 was six days for payments mailed to the vendor. Recently, the vendor encountered delays due to the installation of new remittance processing equipment.
"The new equipment had connectivity issues which created a backlog of payments.
"Customers who reached out to the Office of the City Treasurer during the backlog were advised not to stop payment on their checks, the postmark date was considered the legal payment date.
"When the payments were processed, the postmark date would automatically roll back any late fees if assessed.
"The Office of the City Treasurer generally advises customers to use the online option as the payments are posted in real-time …"
The U.S. Sun has reached out to the City of San Diego for comment.
The city issued Moes a late fee despite her going down to the office and paying her fine in person amid processing failures[/caption]
More >> https://ift.tt/tvzuRnE Source: MAG NEWS