My husband and I rented a car in Italy a year ago. After returning home and 3 months later we got a notice from Eurocar that we received a ticket in Perugia and that they had deducted $60?euros from our credit card to cover the ticket. Since this was all in Italian; which I do not understand; we thought everything was taken care of. So now it is a whole year later and we get a ticket from the commune of Perugia saying that we now owe them 150.50 euros for this ticket. I do not even know what the ticket is for as we were never stopped and never had a ticket posted on the car. I told my husband not to pay it that it sounds like a con to me? Has anyone else experienced this situation?
Posted by
US Pacific Northwest
10344 posts
From what you've said so far, it's probable that the Italian fine you've received is not a scam. Here's a well known, legitimate website that explains what's going on: http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/driving/traffic_cameras_speeding.htmAnd here's a detailed discussion on this board about this subject by others who have received similar fines: http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/helpline/index.cfm?topic=11269We've had 30 or 40 travelers report in here, in the last year, that they've received these tickets; a camera photos your license plate, but it takes awhile for the rental car company to locate you and report your address to the Italian authorities; the charge from the rental car company is their fee to retrieve your records and report your address to the police; and the the €150 from Perugia is the fine itself.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19232 posts
Seems like just one more good reason to take the train.
It's also a good reason to stay out of Italy. Note that the warning sign was in Italian only. The Italian want to get as much money as possible from Americans and don't care if they do it honestly, or not.
Posted by
Ottawa, Canada
4555 posts
Hmmmm....a traffic sign in Italy in Italian only. That's a surprise? The international traffic symbol for a traffic restriction (a big red circle) seems clear and prominent on the signs. And the words in Italian, "Zona Traffico Limitato" can't be that difficult to figure out! So how do you judge the money is taken "unfairly?"
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32318 posts
I usually prefer to travel via train and avoid the expense (not as cost effective when travelling solo) and potential "hassles" of a rental car (such as the dreaded ZTL fines). However, I don't see this as a "good reason to stay out of Italy".
It would seem as logical for road signs in Italy to be in Italian as signs here in English. Given the number of tourists that visit Italy, it would be virtually impossible for these to show a number of languages for all or even most visitors.
I would strongly disagree that the intent is "to get as much money as possible from Americans and don't care if they do it honestly, or not". It's highly probable that renters from many countries on both sides of the Atlantic are being ticketed as a result of the ZTL zones.
I see nothing "dishonest" in legally posting traffic regulations and fining those that disobey. I'm sure Italians have had to pay these as well. In some ways this is similar to the Congestion Charge in London (albeit with higher fines). Those that drive in restricted areas are "nicked" with a fine. The intent is to "financially encourage" drivers to stay out of specific areas in the city centres.
A partial solution may be for car rental firms to provide more information to customers on the ZTL areas (perhaps a "handout" or whatever when renting?), but consumers also need to take some responsibility for educating themselves.
Cheers!
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19232 posts
You just can’t compare a country in Europe to the United States.
The 10 counties of the original EU15 on the western European peninsula, plus Switzerland, have about 300 million people, all living in an area about the size of the U.S. east of the Mississippi. Almost 250 million of these people speak one of four languages - German, French, Italian, or Spanish – as a mother tongue. That’s almost exactly the same number of people who speak English as a mother tongue in this country. And, according to statistics provided by the EU, about 110 million people on the western continent can only speak their mother tongue.
Of all these Europeans, only about 19% live in Italy and speak Italian. Only about 2-1/2% outside Italy speak Italian as a second language, so about 97-1/2% of visitors to Italy won’t speak any Italian.
It would be virtually impossible for these to show a number of languages for all or even most visitors.
True, but the Europeans are smarter than that. Since one third of all Europeans on the western continent speak English, English has become the common language. As Rick says, “Signs are in two languages, [the local language] for the locals, and English for everyone else. And, the percentage of tourists who speak English is probably much higher than overall. As my French cousin said, “In Europe, if you want to travel, you learn English; if you can’t speak English, you stay at home.”