Almost an entire year ago, 4/10/08, my son and I were in Italy. We rented a car in Florence. In returning the car we crossed into one of the restricted areas. We were lost. Anyway, Hertz sent us a bill for the infraction which I paid. Now, nearly a year later I have received a bill from the "Polizia Municipale" demanding that I pay $98.30 euro for this infraction.
Is this a scam or should I pay it?
Type the letters ZTL into the search box at the top of your browser screen, to read some of the many discussions on this topic. Based on previous travelers' comments, the first bill could have been from Hertz for administrative costs, while the second bill could have been the actual fine.
Sheryl, being lost is no excuse!
(stops pounding desk, puts shoe back on)
Actually I was trying to spare you all the details. We had a GPS system and were heading back to Hertz to turn in the car. The route back to Hertz was torn up for repair, there was a huge hole instead of the street like a subway. We called Hertz, they said they were aware of the road construction and for us to cross the ZTL and they would take care of the violation. Unfortunately, I believe them. We turned in the car and about 2 months later received a $600 charge to my credit card. Wrote them a letter asking what it was, they wrote back that it was the FINE for the ZTL violation...that's right the FINE itself, I have it in writing. They also said that their staff would NEVER have said that they would take care of the violation.
So take your shoe and instead of hitting the desk whack yourself in the face with it you self righteous jerk
Geez, Sheryl, that's a bummer.
What the Hertz guys really meant is that they would "take care of" the ZTL fines. Unfortunately quotation marks don't translate well across phone lines. What an outdated technology.
Written correspondence doesn't have this shortcoming, but of course sarcasm can be hard to detect. Can't have everything, I guess.
On point, you say Hertz charged you $600 for one ZTL violation even before you received paperwork from the police? I'm not ruling out a scam, but not on the part of the police.
Seriously, you should read the ZTL threads in this forum. I can't defend self-righteousness...it's the naughty opposite thing where I stake my claim.
The heck with the fine, that is explainable, 600 Euro from Hertz? I would have contested that charge...as Claire mentioned, while fines are steep, that was flat out fraud, by the Hertz employees, not the police. Generally, Hertz will only charge you maybe $50 for providing info to the police in order for them to ticket you.
Sheryl....simply send the police a copy of the Hertz information that you've paid the fine, and leave it at that. $600 is a lot for one ZTL violation....you may find a few more notices showing up in your mailbox in the coming weeks, detailing other ZTL incursions. And don't worry about Neil....he loves getting up on his soapbox to rant about the right of freedom-loving Americans to ignore the laws of other countries. ;)
There is no way the violations was 600 euros. The 98.30 you mentioned sounds more like the standard amount for driving through a ZTL, a year is about how long it would take the ticket to get to you. Is there any way you can take it up with the Hertz people? It sounds like Hertz is taking you for a ride, not the Comune of Florence!
One of the quirks in the ZTL rules that I don't often explain is that you can enter a ZTL to get to a hotel or place of business. The place of business is supposed to call in your license number to the police. I would expect that they also provide you with some evidence on their letterhead that they did inform the police. The problem is either THEY DON'T DO IT or if they do, the police department just doesn't take the time to match up the picture with the phone call. That's why I never advise people to enter a ZTL.
I would send them a nice letter explaing the details. Tell them that Hertz instructed you to enter the ZTL and that they would take the proper procedures. You trusted their instructions and it didn't seem to work. In this instance, I would not pay the fine.
I have the same question about the €600 as Claire and Paul have already asked.
Hertz charged YOU a fee to turn your contact information over to the police. The ticket is a separate charge sent by the municipality. Hertz is notorious for this practice!
