Rcvd e-mail Traffic Fine in Cefalu from Hertz from this May 8th today, August 12th !

This comes up a lot here. It's not a scam. Pay it.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tourist-scams/insanely-high-traffic-fines-in-italy-rip-off-alert

You are about the 10,000th person to complain about Italian traffic tickets in the mail, and "administrative" charges from the rental car company. Cancelling your credit card does not negate legitimate charges incurred on the card, otherwise everybody would be doing it. The administrative fees are explained in the rental agreement you signed. I'm sure you read every word of the document (in Italian).

You either drove through a ZTL which had a automated camera, or an automated speed trap camera. They sent the license plate info to the owner of record, the rental agency, and they sent the Cefalu authorities your name, address and drivers license info, then charged your credit card the fee for that chore, which you agrred to when you rented it.

Cefalu may never bother even sending you the ticket, but the city of Florence sends out a ton every month, along with threats to turn the ticket over to a US collection agency.

Lighten up. Relax. Standard procedure - you agreed to it -- it is not the Mafia. It is not the mother of all scams or even a min one. It sometimes takes a year for the actual ticket to catch up. Canceling the credit card will do no good since the card was good and in effect when you rented the car. You don't need both your credit card company and Hertz after you because they will win.

But you were well aware of the potential situation. You asked a whole bunch of questions back in Feb about TL zones and other things related to driving. So don't play innocent driver. You know there was a potential problems from all of the other postings you had read. I think you were well informed.

Nope not the Mafia, and not a scam. Dial down the outrage. You have a traffic violation. Read the link provided, or do a search on the forum for traffic tickets. The first notice you get is from the car rental agency letting you know that they have provided the police with your contact details. They will charge your card an admin fee for this. To follow will be the actual ticket from the police. Get it translated and follow the instructions to pay the fine. It's not unusual for several months to elapse before you get this stuff in the mail.

I posted the original outrage. I don't have a problem with getting a legitimate violation fine/ticket by the Police (or somebody!) on or near the violation date. But, when it allegedly happened May 8 and you get an email 3 months later that' s an outrage. And, Hertz Italy (well-documented herein) is rife with other complaints. Administrative fees 30.5 Euros, really, -- scam !

You have to be joking. Right? A camera got you. It is legitimate. Actually think three month is pretty speedy. And 30 euro is about average. Have seen reports here for the fee being as high as 45 euro. Waiting until they charge three or four administrative fees for additional tickets. Then you will be unhappy.

You know how the system works. You were discussing it back in Feb. So suck in the fake rage. It will not make any difference to anyone here. Hertz is not to blame. You were the one driving the car. Pay the fine when you get the ticket

Wow! How's this for a self-fulfilling prophecy? Looks like this tourist "got soaked" as predicted.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/ztl-driving-zones-sicily-and-elsewhere-i-guess

Here is the top result when I google Cefalu ZTL.
https://www.accessibilitacentristorici.it/ztl/Sicily/cefalu.html

You think 3 months is a long time? Maybe in the US it would be. I don't know about other countries in Europe but from Italy or France it can take up to a year and I've heard of even longer than that. You got a ticket, the rental company has a right per their contract to charge you a fee, so both are legitimate (not a scam). Pay it.

Talk to me someone. 3 months later !

From reading reports here, 3 months is a record for promptness.

Look at any rental agreement from any rental agency here in the US and you will see that an 'administrative fee' is not unique to Italy.

It is an unfortunate reminder of your trip, but it is not the 'mother of all scams' and cancelling your card is pointless. I would expect Hertz put the charge through on your account when they sent you the email notice.

The authorities have 90days to notify the owner of the vehicle of the violation.
If it’s a rental car, the rental car company has 60days to provide the authorities with the renter’s information. Following that the authorities have 90 days to notify the renter who was driving the vehicle, if the renter is a resident of a Italy. If the renter resides overseas the authorities have one year to send the fine. So you are not off the hook yet.

Edmond,

I'm not sure why you continue to insist that this is "the mother of all scams". This is a perfectly normal occurrence for those who violate the rules when driving in Italy. It could be a ZTL violation, a speed violation or even things like driving in a bus lane. It sometimes takes much longer to receive the actual ticket. This happens all over Italy and is not unique to Sicily, and has nothing to do with the "Mafia".

When you signed on the dotted line, you agreed to pay all traffic fines, so cancelling the credit card will probably be a futile strategy. Hopefully you only receive one ticket. I'd suggest just paying the ticket and treat it as a "learning experience".

Interesting that back in February you posted this:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/ztl-driving-zones-sicily-and-elsewhere-i-guess

Seems like you knew (and were already "outraged" by) this "scam" before you even went on the trip.

Well done!

We rented in Italy in May 2017-- we're just starting to feel fairly comfortable that there's not a ticket coming. (But not absolutely sure.)

Too many coincidences, the op is obviously a troll. I thought the same in February. Some guy who was fined and has a personal internet crusade going on.

The mafia remark because it took 3 months to charge his cc confirms it. No real person would spit on thousands of deaths for 35 €, one must have been raised in a pigpen to do it.

A Troll looking for the most provocative words to get many answers, stay on page 1 as long as possible and thus become a "source" that proves it's all a scam.

When you receive the formal ticket for the infraction, then you can decide how to proceed.

Cancelling your credit card does not negate the charge(s). Wait for the documents/ticket. They must have proof you were in violation of something. It's very doubtful they made up anything on purpose. Mistake can be made, but if they zapped you on cam, then they have proof of the violation.

It seems you are/were aware of the risks/possibilities of driving in Italy. Playing ignorant will not get you out of a ticket. When you get behind a wheel, it is (you) the driver's responsibility (and fully conscious) to know the ins and outs; especially in unfamiliar territory. Traveler's can wander unknowingly into an area "thought to be okay," but can be reserved for limited traffic, residents, etc.

Also, why are you insulting the Sicilians? You wrote you are having the docs translated from a Sicilian relative. Do they appreciate that? And, with your Sicilian relatives, did they not warn you about driving around certain areas and what to watch out for? But, if you were speeding, only you could have controlled that.

Look at the OP's posting history. It will put this post in perspective.

Would be interesting to know how US rental companies handle the same situation in the US. I would assume it would be similar. In the US, I have receive toll charges after the rental was completed. The amount was relatively small so I don't fess about it.

We rented last year in Italy and are pass the one year mark with no friendly reminders of our visit. But we were damn careful and paid a lot of attention to traffic signs. One thing we noticed is that there appeared to be a speed camera at entry to every town shortly after the sign for reduced speed. Don't know if they were active or not.

A few years ago I received a notice about a post-rental charge in the US. The rental company was passing along a fine for driving through a toll gate without paying, on top of which it had added an administrative fee. I don't remember the amount of either. I was able to get both fees waived, because I had driven exactly where the temporary signage had directed me to go, on a day when they had all the toll booths closed for some sort of construction. I was very happy not to have to fight about it.

The only scam is that the OP should not rent a car if 30 euro is paining him, maybe his flight was free or his room,30 euro is a drop in the bücket..
Mike

I've had the same situation happen while driving in and around Miami on a toll road The rental car company sent us the fine + administrative costs. I don't remember the admin fee, and it was a learning experience for us since we live in a state without toll roads. Live and learn.