Invoice from a car rental company alleging "traffic infraction" 9 MONTHS LATER!

[Safire]

Facts: Rented a car in NJ for 2 days in August 2023. Paid $800 for the initial rental, then they charged us an additional $100 the day of the return with NO explanation. 2 days later (and a day after we had returned home), I noticed an additional $80 in "tolls" charged to my credit card. Let it go as we were new to NJ and we may have gone on a toll road without realizing it.

Exactly 9 month to the day we returned the car, I received an invoice, demanding $110 for a "traffic infraction" and quoting a citation number. The cost of the alleged infraction is $50 but the rental car company's "administrative charge" is $60.

I am BEYOND ANGRY. I do not mind paying a legitimate bill I owe, but a bill 9 months later for an infraction they give us NO details is very shady / questionable. In the email demanding payment, they openly threaten to send us to collections and "ruin our credit" -- an omnious threat indeed. The only reason they couldn't charge our credit card on their file is because my purse was stolen in January and we closed all accounts. HA!

My questions (as we rarely travel so probably are green between the ears here):

1. Can a car rental company actually only learn of an alleged parking infraction 9 months later?

2. Can a car rental company "ruin our credit"? Shouldn't they or the collections agency they're threatening to send us to know our social to be able to report us to the credit bureaus? How on Earth does this work?

3. I am afraid that if I sucked it up and paid it off (it's not unaffordable), they may think they can charge me as and when they want with no check in place. How should I handle this?

Should I demand to see a copy of the alleged citation? Should I refuse to pay the bogus "administrative fee"? How do I word any email I send this place? BTW, Googling them shows that they do this frequently and BBB is full of complaints about their various "practices" so I have no doubt I'm dealing with professional (scammers masquerading as car rentals) here. Too bad I didn't "Google" them before I went to get the car!

Please help!

 

[brucethebroker]

Dunno, but I was sent a letter about a badly damaged tire on a rental (10 years ago at that time). No one said anything about a tire problem when I returned the car (the ee did a walk around looking for damage). The letter came about 3 months after the rental. I called and told them that if a tire was damaged, it wasn't us, and reminded them of the "inspection" at turn in. I never heard from them again, and wondered if it was some sort of scam.

 

[Safire]

Well, a tire or any other physical damage is easy to "prove" with photos, return "inspections" and what not, but hard to argue with an alleged parking violation or other citation with nothing to go off on, except a citation number 9 MONTHS AFTER THE FACT. I am pretty sure this is a scam, I just need help with how to respond to this.

Thanks.

 

[aja8888]

For starters, call them and ask for a copy of the citation.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

What company is this so everyone can avoid using them?

 

[Kings over Queens]

get an explanation as to the traffic infraction. I live in NJ, and assume it's either a red light ticket, or a toll violation. lets see if I'm right.

as to the threatening of credit, assuming the 50 charge is legit, there may be a way to settle that separately, and then get the rental company to waive the admin charge. it's going to take some work, time on the phone, aggravation and agita.

My last rental, AVIS tried to hammer me for a tank of gas despite it being filled 15 miles before drop. called them, told the guy on the phone "nice try," he laughed and reversed the charge. he went on to tell me after I questioned him, "the guys at newark do this to every car, not everyone looks at their bill."

 

[Safire]

Hi, since you are in NJ, is it "normal" for an alleged violation to only come to a rental car company's notice 9 months later? I absolutely will pay if it's a legitimate charge but I somehow suspect this isn't it. BTW, this *was* in Newark.

 

[Jerry1]

It would also be interesting to see how your original bill syncs up with this claim. You said you already paid extra for $80 for tolls and $100 unexplained. I’d try to make the case that this has already been paid for, depending on what documentation you can produce. Definitely get more formal support for the infraction. You might find that you can prove that you weren’t even in the car at that time.

 

[Safire]

Hi,

Yes, I paid $180 for the car, and never got a proper explanation for $100 of that. Now, this.

My main question is -- how does the car rental company or their collections agency report us to the bureau? I don't recall ever giving them my SSN! Now I am confused. What am I missing here? Help!

 

[GoBears]

I agree you should ask for a copy of the citation if you don’t recall getting it at the time.

I suspect the fine print in your rental agreement includes language by which you agree to pay not only any citations you receive, but also the rental company’s administrative charges in processing citations sent to them because they weren’t paid. Assuming you no longer have a copy of the rental contract, you should ask the company for a copy and for them to cite the specific provision that obligates you to pay an administrative fee under these circumstances.

I’m no expert, but if you are contractually obligated to pay for the citation and administrative fee and don’t do so, turning the matter over to a collection agency seems logical. Of course, the company has the burden of proving the citation was issued to your vehicle during your rental period. If they cannot prove it and send you to collections anyway, I would think you could have a claim against them.

 

[Kings over Queens]

Hi, since you are in NJ, is it "normal" for an alleged violation to only come to a rental car company's notice 9 months later? I absolutely will pay if it's a legitimate charge but I somehow suspect this isn't it. BTW, this *was* in Newark.

I have no idea how long "normal" is, however, it can take some time to filter down from the authority who issued the charge to the end user. example, i get loaners from the local dealer when the car is serviced. technically a rental. the loaner's never came with ezpass, and inevitably I'd go through the automatic toll lane. it could take months before I got the charge from the dealer. it got to be such an issue for the dealer they just put ezpass in each car.

NJ is lousy with toll roads and it wouldn't surprise me if you went through an automatic lane. they are everywhere, and we are getting close to 100% toll by mail (or ezpass) everywhere.

another point, the longer it takes, the more the authority charges. second example, you go through the toll plaza and generate a 1:25 toll, which gets billed to the rental company. rental company ignores it. second bill comes with a 25 late fee, plus the toll. lather rinse repeat.

 

[Walt34]

If you're in a position that you won't need credit in the foreseeable future like me, I'd tell them to pound sand. Go ahead and "ruin my credit". I seriously doubt that one unpaid bill will ruin anyone's credit. It might ding it a few points for a year or two, but "ruin it"? I don't think so.

 

[Safire]

I agree you should ask for a copy of the citation if you don’t recall getting it at the time.

I suspect the fine print in your rental agreement includes language by which you agree to pay not only any citations you receive, but also the rental company’s administrative charges in processing citations sent to them because they weren’t paid. Assuming you no longer have a copy of the rental contract, you should ask the company for a copy and for them to cite the specific provision that obligates you to pay an administrative fee under these circumstances.

I’m no expert, but if you are contractually obligated to pay for the citation and administrative fee and don’t do so, turning the matter over to a collection agency seems logical. Of course, the company has the burden of proving the citation was issued to your vehicle during your rental period. If they cannot prove it and send you to collections anyway, I would think you could have a claim against them.

Thank you! Yes, if I did in fact commit this "violation" then I am going to pay this fine. I am assuming the citation would mention the license plate number of the car in question (and match the plate number in the rental agreement)?

Also, this is the anxiety provoking part -- how can collections agencies report me to the credit bureaus without knowing my SSN? This is the part I just don't get / understand.

 

[Kings over Queens]

Hi,

Yes, I paid $180 for the car, and never got a proper explanation for $100 of that. Now, this.

My main question is -- how does the car rental company or their collections agency report us to the bureau? I don't recall ever giving them my SSN! Now I am confused. What am I missing here? Help!

If you got a legit debt collection notice, they are obligated to provide proof that the debt is legitimate. I'm dealing with a $67.50 charge that my health insurance company was supposed to pay. the notice from the debt agency has a box to check if I dispute the debt.

as far as dinging your credit, I'm not sure they need a social security number any more. its scary, and infuriating, how much power those dopes have over us.

 

[Safire]

If you're in a position that you won't need credit in the foreseeable future like me, I'd tell them to pound sand. Go ahead and "ruin my credit". I seriously doubt that one unpaid bill will ruin anyone's credit. It might ding it a few points for a year or two, but "ruin it"? I don't think so.

LOL. I love this. But given my anxiety I doubt I'd be able to pull this off with a straight face. What bothers me is the *tough guy* image the letter attempts to portray... oooh, I am shaking! In all probability, if they can prove I incurred the charges, I'd pay it. I just don't like being made to feel like I am a deadbeat for not paying a charge for 9 months when this is the first I've ever heard of it!

 

[Kings over Queens]

If you're in a position that you won't need credit in the foreseeable future like me, I'd tell them to pound sand. Go ahead and "ruin my credit". I seriously doubt that one unpaid bill will ruin anyone's credit. It might ding it a few points for a year or two, but "ruin it"? I don't think so.

100 points or more for 3 years. I learned this due to a dispute, again, over a health insurance bill for my wife. had no idea she got dinged until we filed for a HELOC and the bank didn't want her name on the note due to her credit score. I would not advise ignoring this.

 

[Jerry1]

Also, this is the anxiety provoking part -- how can collections agencies report me to the credit bureaus without knowing my SSN? This is the part I just don't get / understand.

I'm guessing that they do not need your SS#. They have a lot of information on you including your driver's license, home address, etc. That should be enough for the credit agency to accept the report.

I would recommend that you look inside yourself and see if you really want to deal with this. Yes, it's $110 bucks and there's a possibility that it's not legitimate. Still, what's your time worth - especially if you're experiencing anxiety?

 

[Safire]

If you got a legit debt collection notice, they are obligated to provide proof that the debt is legitimate. I'm dealing with a $67.50 charge that my health insurance company was supposed to pay. the notice from the debt agency has a box to check if I dispute the debt.

as far as dinging your credit, I'm not sure they need a social security number any more. its scary, and infuriating, how much power those dopes have over us.

Oh good Lord! I just don't understand how any random bum off the streets can now - just knowing my name and dob (since they did get a copy of my license) - can now make a claim I owe a debt and then ding my credit. Like what the what?

IF you did dispute the debt, then can the colelction agency still report you to the credit bureaus?

Quite frankly, this is a monkey I'd rather have off my back. I am only concerned that if I paid this bill up without questioning it, there could be more bogus bills coming my way because it would seem to them that I am a sucker who fell for their "fear tactics". What would you do in my shoes or advice me if I were your sister? Help!

 

[Safire]

I'm guessing that they do not need your SS#. They have a lot of information on you including your driver's license, home address, etc. That should be enough for the credit agency to accept the report.

I would recommend that you look inside yourself and see if you really want to deal with this. Yes, it's $110 bucks and there's a possibility that it's not legitimate. Still, what's your time worth - especially if you're experiencing anxiety?

Hi, wow I just posted this exact same thing. Given my anxiety issues, and given it's not unaffordable, I would rather just pay and then write up a nasty review on Google and maybe even complain to the BBB, but my real concern is - what if they think I fell for their fear mongering and sent me MORE bogus bills? I guess the real issue is that I don't want to turn into a piggy bank for this monstrosity. What would you advice? Thanks!

 

[Kings over Queens]

first, big deep breath.

1. I would suggest you call the rental company, and ask for an explanation.
2. I would dispute the debt collection. they can't report you to any credit bureau while the debt is being disputed.

 

[Jerry1]

Hi, wow I just posted this exact same thing. Given my anxiety issues, and given it's not unaffordable, I would rather just pay and then write up a nasty review on Google and maybe even complain to the BBB, but my real concern is - what if they think I fell for their fear mongering and sent me MORE bogus bills? I guess the real issue is that I don't want to turn into a piggy bank for this monstrosity. What would you advice? Thanks!

I would ask for some documentation that this is the final payment on this vehicle and that all is paid in full as part of paying the bill.

 

[cathy63]

My main question is -- how does the car rental company or their collections agency report us to the bureau? I don't recall ever giving them my SSN! Now I am confused. What am I missing here? Help!

They have your name, address, DL number, birth date (from the DL), and an old CC #. That's enough to ding your credit report.

 

[aja8888]

OP, if they need your SS number, I'm sure they can find it with an internet search, but I doubt they would need it to bang your credit.

 

[MC Rider]

Tell them pound sand as mentioned. Or better, GFY!
Umm, I don't care about my credit rating. We do cash.
If you care about that, maybe temper your comments.
Tell them to go to hell in that case.

 

[Montecfo]

I would ask for a copy of citation.

I would ask them to explain the extra charges from your rental which is just as old. Hopefully you can get some offset there.

I would assume they CAN jack with your credit and I would not let that happen.

After one email I would get them on the phone. Keep good notes of who you talked to.

Good luck!