thadocta

Very few people actually know the mechanics of what happens, it isn't secret, but it isn't in the public domain either.

Dave

guinnless

hey there,

i too have the wa authorities trying to extort money from me.
i was doing 111km/hr on a dual carriageway - in what i now know was an 80 zone (usually 70mph/~110km/hr in the uk!) and so this means they want me to pay $700!

as i was driving a hire car rented by an aussie work colleague she had to give my name, care of our company here in the uk.
i have now received the bill but don't want to pay if i don't have to, from your posts so far, it looks like i could just ignore it.

..but do you know if they are more likely to pursue me for a fine of this much?

thanks for your help
Dom

number_6

Your infringement is big enough to trigger further processing (not just due to the fine amount but for the amount over the limit). Anyone's guess what will actually happen, but I'd say there is likely to be some attempt at recovery; unluckily for you WA has a different system from most states for fine recovery. They can (and do) suspend the vehicle license as well as the license of the driver. Now you are immune from driver license suspension (presuming you don't have a WA license), however the suspension of the vehicle license will cause the car rental company to pay the fine -- they can't afford to have a vehicle with a suspended license. Then they will charge the renter (your co-worker) the cost (fine, their costs, plus some number of days for the loss of use on the vehicle). Probably a few thousand dollars. This process will take between 6 months and a year, but it is quite likely to happen. As far as I know the major tourist states (Queensland, NSW and Vic) don't have the power to suspend vehicle license for traffic offences, so this is unique to WA.

guinnless

hey number 6,
thanks for your reply, looks like i was unlucky in the very worst state!
i take it you mean the vehicle licence would be suspended if the fine is not paid?
either way it looks like i don't have much choice other than to pay
thanks for your help

thadocta

They do, "sort of" - in NSW, the SDRO will direct the RTA to have no further dealings with a particular person. This will include renewing drivers licences, vehicle registrations, registration transfers, and so on. But this will only be upon the nominated driver, not the owner.

So vehicle registration will become an issue at some stage, and cannot be avoided by transferring registration to somebody else.

Dave

turtlemichael

Um, you were recorded doing 111kph in an 80 kph zone. Unlucky is not the word I'd use.

Gooner Pete

I am in UK and have just received a letter from SPER in QSLD chasing a speeding ticket they gave me in 2004!!

It says the are considering issuing a "Fine Collection Notice" to my bank to recover the fine ($395).

Anyone know whether they have the power to do that in UK?

Incidentally I was back in Oz for the first time since 2004 last month, and had no probs with visa or immigration.

Thanks for any info.

bensyd

No they can't. How do they know who you bank with?

DownUnderFlyer

I don't know UK regulation but maybe credit bureaus / government agencies will supply this information for debt collection purposes?

bensyd

The UK government has pretty strict privacy protection. I'd be very surprised if a foreign government agency can request someone's bank details without a court order.

number_6

The bank details might be held in any number of databases outside of the UK. I doubt the following applies in Australia (but I don't know), however in the US thanks to the Patriot Act it is legal and possible for assets to be seized against any interbank account held by the owning institution. So only the name of the bank needs to be known. Of course the Patriot Act is intended to be against terrorism, but the law as written could be applied for collecting speeding fines from overseas tourists -- it hasn't (yet). The legal ground and process is perhaps shakier in this decade than in past ones, and relying on anonymity or difficulty of collection in the process is fast becoming a poor defence. All this technology is making it cheap/easy to track down assets, even with the "strong" privacy laws that exist. Every time you rent a car you consent to having such information collected about you and stored by unknown 3rd parties -- at least all the rental agreements that I have read recently had such clauses. Certainly Hertz/Avis/Europcar etc won't rent to you except with this provision (normally they use it to check for suspended driver licenses etc. but also for collecting collision damage on their rentals). Most agreements would allow collection of bank details.

DownUnderFlyer

It might not be a foreign government but a EU/UK based collection agency or someone else who has purchased the debt.

Arcanum

I just got a bill for NZ$80 for speeding in a rental car in April, and I've read the posts in this forum with some interest.

From what others have posted, it sounds as if I could safely ignore the ticket and likely never face any consequences.

That being said, in theory I could potentially have to deal with any or all of the following:

a) problems at Immigration when visiting NZ again
b) collection agencies coming after me for the fine
c) issues renting from the same car agency

The fine works out to about CA$60, which is (at least in my mind) a small price to pay to insure I never have problems down the road. Peace of mind does have a certain value.

Of course, the fact that I am guilty should be reason enough to pay. Do the crime, do the time. Right?

BiziBB

I would imagine that you would have agreed to pay any fine incurred back to your rental company.

It might be worth checking your rental agreement for such a clause.

Kiwis or Aussies who like to read every line of the agreement might be abe to second this. I do recall reading such a clause in a Hertz contract.

On the bright side,fines are nowhere as excessive for slightly over in NZ than in NSW.

HTH.

DownUnderFlyer

Right.