Robot Tolls - At My Limit!

[AdvancedQs]

Maryland. Has anyone had trouble with Maryland?

I went through 2 tolls in Maryland over a year ago. October1, 2022.

In November 2022 I checked on their website to see if I had tolls to pay. It said they were none to pay. I took screenshot of that. With the date and everything.

Now yesterday I got a new thing in the mail from Maryland. It says I owe a six dollar and an 8 toll plus $70+ in penalties. Civil penalties it’s called.

Between last October and now I have received nothing else. No communication. Only this notice over a year later saying that I owe fees and fines even though I screenshotted their system showing no tolls.

So I called customer service. Trying to get those fines taken off and to pay. The woman was pretty nice. No problems there. She reduced everything down to $24 which is still more than I should be paying, but just to get it over with that’s fine. This is how they rob people. I understand it. it’s a shake down because you’re not from the state. No problem. I’m paying the $24.

So she put me through to the automated system. It doesn’t take my card. It takes me back to her. No problem. So we try my card manually. Decline. It has over $5000 available on it. We try it again. Declined. So I try my debit card. There’s $10,000 in there. Declined. Apparently their system is not working properly or my bank is deciding that they are not on the up and up.

OK so no problem here now. I’m going to spend even more time paying a toll. I go onto their website and I create a brand new account. Putting all of my license plate information. Credit card information. (The online system took my card no problem ) They ask for a lot of information. I had to fill it all out so that I could pay online. Well guess what?

The online system says I HAVE NO TOLL DUE!!!

I am beyond my limit here. This is the stupidest thing I have ever seen. Nothing works with that system. I can’t even pay. I don’t even know what else to do. But it sure will keep accumulating and they will pass it onto my state won’t they?

Has anyone else had all these problems with Maryland?

Also it should not take $24 and 6 hours of my life to go through two ******* tolls. Especially not when it cost all of those toll operators their jobs.

I have had it with these kind of tolls at this point.

[Samsonsworld]

haste maker wrote:
It's not just Maryland they are all crooks, I paid to get on a toll road in Maine this summer, went one exit (about 3 miles) to a service plaza for food, and had to pay another toll to get back on the same toll road.

I just got one from September for a truck I traded into a dealership in July and I was told that I am liable for it. How's that for a scam?

[AdvancedQs]

ken56 wrote:
I got one out in Utah for being in the HOV lane. Well there were 2 people in the vehicle and I was towing the trailer but I am certain I was never in the HOV lane. I ignored it. Not paying for their mistakes and dishonesty. As it is I avoid tolls like the plague and run secondary routes as much as I can, a much more pleasant drive without the usual Nascar wannabees road raging at the "old" people pulling trailers.

Definitely. I have to do 95 a lot. The road not the speed lol. I usually avoid Maryland and DC like the plague because the traffic is unimaginable. I go way around through West Virginia and Pennsylvania instead. It’s a nice drive. It doesn’t take much longer because of the reduced traffic. This one time I was in a rush and I went straight through all of the tolls. The other states didn’t give me any difficulty. I paid my tolls online. Just this one state

[Mr__C]

I went thru one in Chicagoland 3yrs ago, and never heard a thing. Go figure...

[ken56]

I got one out in Utah for being in the HOV lane. Well there were 2 people in the vehicle and I was towing the trailer but I am certain I was never in the HOV lane. I ignored it. Not paying for their mistakes and dishonesty. As it is I avoid tolls like the plague and run secondary routes as much as I can, a much more pleasant drive without the usual Nascar wannabees road raging at the "old" people pulling trailers.

[marty1300]

We got one , it was more than what it should have been. I called got info how to address/dispute. Sent an email as required with all documentation and never heard back. Then many weeks later another invoice. I sent another email telling them to address/ fix before I would send them any money.

[AdvancedQs]

04fxsts wrote:
Probably ten or so years ago I got a bill for a toll from a license plate reader in Ney York state. I have never been in NYS and don't ever plan to be there, sent a letter explaining that back to NYS. They were not convinced and sent another letter saying I would be charged a $25.00 PENALY IF NOT PAID.
At that time I lived in Illinois and the DMV's were no help, couldn't help me. NY now sent a picture of the plates taken at the toll station. The plate number was the same number of a vehicle I had owned in the past. I was able to find a picture of the old "CAR" clearly showing the plate as a passenger car plate. The picture from NY clearly showed the plate was from a class "B" truck and obviously not the same.
Turns out Illinois uses the same numbers on different class plates only with the class shown on plate. I sent both sets of pictures back to NY with an explanation and an invoice for $25.00 for wasting my time and educating them on Illinois licensing system. Never heard anything back from them. Jim.

To me, that’s one of the most annoying parts. I’m not retired. I have a lot to do. A lot of projects going on. Full-time work. And these people are eating up my time, because they can’t get their acts together.

I think that’s part of what they rely on. In your situation, many people would have just paid the $25. That’s how they steal from us. They know $25 is worth less than hours of time so they likely get paid 90% of the time for false charges like yours. Mine too. I should be paying $14. However, I’m paying $24 to waste less time.

It also says right on the bill if you disagree and want to fight it, you have to go back to that state to do so. To appear in court. That’s how they steal from us.

A lot of people go through these tolls so it’s a significant source of revenue.

We, as travelers with RVs are especially vulnerable to this

[04fxsts]

Probably ten or so years ago I got a bill for a toll from a license plate reader in Ney York state. I have never been in NYS and don't ever plan to be there, sent a letter explaining that back to NYS. They were not convinced and sent another letter saying I would be charged a $25.00 PENALY IF NOT PAID.
At that time I lived in Illinois and the DMV's were no help, couldn't help me. NY now sent a picture of the plates taken at the toll station. The plate number was the same number of a vehicle I had owned in the past. I was able to find a picture of the old "CAR" clearly showing the plate as a passenger car plate. The picture from NY clearly showed the plate was from a class "B" truck and obviously not the same.
Turns out Illinois uses the same numbers on different class plates only with the class shown on plate. I sent both sets of pictures back to NY with an explanation and an invoice for $25.00 for wasting my time and educating them on Illinois licensing system. Never heard anything back from them. Jim.

[valhalla360]

Did they sell it to a debt collection firm? That could explain why when you called, they were fully aware and more than happy to take $24 (probably bought the debt $0.24). Once sold, it would be taken off the official system.

That said, yes, it's BS. I never authorized out of state companies to have access to my information via license plate.

Ran into an issue a few years back, traded in an RV out of state and forgot to grab the old license plate. When I realized, I called and the dealer agreed to remove and destroy it. I then got toll bills from Illinois, NY, Mass., & Florida.

I had proof, I wasn't in any of those states at the times in question but they wouldn't consider it. Finally had to get a police report. Then they wouldn't accept sending it via email. I had to pay postage to send it to them. Never did get confirmation back that they received it. For all I know it's still there but I'm not paying.

[QCMan]

AdvancedQs wrote:

rk911 wrote:
Send them a check.

That is what it has come down to. I am going to do that for sure. I just don’t know if the system will be updated properly with the $24 or not. Everything else has failed so far so the confidence level is pretty low.

Maybe you will get lucky and they will put the check into your account so you have funds for other tolls. If the system is so messed up it just might happen.

[ferndaleflyer]

Step son got one from Navada, never been west of VA. Had to pay. Neighbor got one from Delaware with a pic of bent tag and wrong car, had to pay. It’s just a racket

[AdvancedQs]

rk911 wrote:
Send them a check.

That is what it has come down to. I am going to do that for sure. I just don’t know if the system will be updated properly with the $24 or not. Everything else has failed so far so the confidence level is pretty low.

[rk911]

Send them a check.

[haste_maker]

It's not just Maryland they are all crooks, I paid to get on a toll road in Maine this summer, went one exit (about 3 miles) to a service plaza for food, and had to pay another toll to get back on the same toll road.