What happens if you dont pay toll fees (Houston, Austin: attorney, DMV)

[Noregrets11]

What about if you've just moved here from another state and didn't realize that we weren't allowed to use the 99?

We came here from AZ last month and we just followed the route the Google Maps lady told us to take. And continued to use it for a few more times while trying to figure out how to get around. I noticed the "no cash" signs, but i just assumed that meant they would send us the toll bills in the mail. I know that might sound naive, but AZ doesn't have toll roads, so this idea of an exclusive "members only" toll road is new to me.

We have finally settled in and got our licenses, plates and EZ tags. Now, after reading the EZ tag rules I realize that we weren't even allowed to be on that road. So I'm fully expecting an extremely hefty fine for the multiple stations we drove thru.

But that was on our AZ plates.......if they send a violation bill to our AZ address, it will forward to us in TX right? After reading the posts above about the fines not being forwarded to the new address, I'm not so sure!

I would call them to "confess", but I have no idea what days and times we used the 99!

Any one have experience with this? Do they bill/fine out-of-state plates?

[jasonamd]

It might be cheaper if you call and tell them what happened before they invoice you. You should be able to give them your plate number and they will be able to tell which tolls you went through. They will send a bill even with out of state plates. Which section did you use? There are a couple different operators of the toll road depending on the section. Either the Ft. Bend Toll Road Authority or TxDOT.

[curbur]

Originally Posted by Noregrets11

What about if you've just moved here from another state and didn't realize that we weren't allowed to use the 99?

We came here from AZ last month and we just followed the route the Google Maps lady told us to take. And continued to use it for a few more times while trying to figure out how to get around. I noticed the "no cash" signs, but i just assumed that meant they would send us the toll bills in the mail. I know that might sound naive, but AZ doesn't have toll roads, so this idea of an exclusive "members only" toll road is new to me.

We have finally settled in and got our licenses, plates and EZ tags. Now, after reading the EZ tag rules I realize that we weren't even allowed to be on that road. So I'm fully expecting an extremely hefty fine for the multiple stations we drove thru.

But that was on our AZ plates.......if they send a violation bill to our AZ address, it will forward to us in TX right? After reading the posts above about the fines not being forwarded to the new address, I'm not so sure!

I would call them to "confess", but I have no idea what days and times we used the 99!

Any one have experience with this? Do they bill/fine out-of-state plates?

Tell them and sign up immediately if you can, as they'll typically wave the fees for very recent violations and just apply them to your account, (they did for me before). Also call back and check in a few weeks if they don't have any matches on your license plate; it can take a few weeks to get into their system.

[texas7]

Originally Posted by Noregrets11

What about if you've just moved here from another state and didn't realize that we weren't allowed to use the 99?

We came here from AZ last month and we just followed the route the Google Maps lady told us to take. And continued to use it for a few more times while trying to figure out how to get around. I noticed the "no cash" signs, but i just assumed that meant they would send us the toll bills in the mail. I know that might sound naive, but AZ doesn't have toll roads, so this idea of an exclusive "members only" toll road is new to me.

We have finally settled in and got our licenses, plates and EZ tags. Now, after reading the EZ tag rules I realize that we weren't even allowed to be on that road. So I'm fully expecting an extremely hefty fine for the multiple stations we drove thru.

But that was on our AZ plates.......if they send a violation bill to our AZ address, it will forward to us in TX right? After reading the posts above about the fines not being forwarded to the new address, I'm not so sure!

I would call them to "confess", but I have no idea what days and times we used the 99!

Any one have experience with this? Do they bill/fine out-of-state plates?

Just give them the old plate numbers and they can tell you what you owe.

[v2four]

Originally Posted by funeral979

I am currently fighting them for $100 in admin fees. Supposedly I got two notices in the mail in October 2015 for 5 tolls for a total of $2.50. Last week I get a final notice from their collection agency where they tacked on a hefty $100 for my $2.50 in tolls. If I don't pay within 20 days they have threatened to add more fines and fees and a possible suspension of my vehicle registration. The problem is that I moved in June of 2015 and never got the first 2 notices and so had no opportunity to simply pay the tolls. I am currently waiting for them to complete their 'investigation' so that the fees will be removed.

The entire tollway methodology is antiquated, confusing, and down right embarrassing in regards to collection efforts and the outrageous amount they charge. To add a $5.00 fee and a $19.00 admin charge to a fifty cent or one dollar toll has no merit whatsoever, and its a terrible business policy to sucker an extra $24.00 PER TOLL violation.

I was surprised in late december to receive a certified letter from the fort bend county commissioners court via their collection agency Linebarker and associates saying I missed a court date due to toll violations on the grand parkway and westpark toll and they were adding $500 court fee to the $5.00 worth of tolls on my vehicle and the $10.00 worth of tolls on my wifes car...after adding in their respective fees, they wanted over $1k for my car and my wifes car was over $2k......they were expecting $3100k from us in 30 days for $15.00 worth of tolls...BS I said...

how did we get toll violations in the first place I wondered, when I normally keep $75 plus on our hctra account? well, those yahoo's at hctra said we had toll violations from January 2014, March 2014 and October 2014...YES, TWO THOUSAND FOURTEEN, and over a year later, they decided to take the money (along with the fees) right out our replenished account without telling us....I added over $150.00 in two weeks to our account and it was gone in a second...I was miffed at those clowns...but upon calling the fort bend clerk to find out why I wasnt properly served a court notice, they told me to call the Fort bend county toll road authority..

I called the FBCTRA and inquired about the demand letter from the court and how I was never notified of any toll violations...once I provided my address, the clerk on the line informed me that my address in the system was inverted by two numbers...the second and third numbers were wrong..so the original toll violations, the final attempt to pay, the original court date letter or nothing was sent to me....Bing Bing Bing.....no money for you fort bend county.....I was placed on hold for about ten minutes....then I was told to call the ponzy collector for the tollroads so they can iron the situation out...

it took multiple phone calls to get in touch with those goons, but once I got one of their agents on the line, I let her have it....I informed her what happened, who I spoke with at FBCTRA and how they admitted on their recorded lines they were in wrong in regards to the address snafu and I offered to pay our original $15.00 in tolls and be done......they said they would get back with me...

they said they could drop the original $3100 they were looking to collect down to $286.00...I told them to kick rocks....I once again offered $15.00, which were the original toll cost, and I had no intent on paying any admin fees or additional charges they add because I never received anything in mail.....waiting for an answer back now.

Needless to say, I call HCTRA now at least twice a month to check and see if any non paid invoices are on my account because if you have a violation, it wont show up on your account, but if you have money on your account, they will just pay it without your knowledge and thats how you get additional violations...sounds like a game they are playing

[Noregrets11]

Originally Posted by jasonamd

It might be cheaper if you call and tell them what happened before they invoice you. You should be able to give them your plate number and they will be able to tell which tolls you went through. They will send a bill even with out of state plates. Which section did you use? There are a couple different operators of the toll road depending on the section. Either the Ft. Bend Toll Road Authority or TxDOT.

Well, I called them this morning to fess up and pay whatever fees I have coming to me.

First I called HCTRA (30 min hold time) but she didn't show me in the system, so she told me to call TxTag. That was only a 5 min wait, but she didn't show me either. We figured out the problem, though; she said the system doesn't update until after 1 month, so I will need to call back after 1 month has elapsed after my LAST violation to get all of the violations bundled together.

Looks like I'll be calling them again in a couple weeks!

[FredfromFL]

Passed through Houston week before last. Not being used to the EZPay system, my inadvertant straying into forbidden territory, without an obvious means of escape, set me to looking for a toll booth. Don't believe I have ever been on a toll road that, at some point or points did not have a toll booth. Needless to say I was surprised two days ago when I received an invoice for THREE violations at intersections I wouldn't know from Adam's housecat. I will pay the penalty, no doubt, but it will be a cold day in hell before I come back through Houston again. Needless to say it was one of the low points in our 5,800-mile trip from Florida to California and back.

[shortel]

the toll system isnt that hard to figure out. Sounds like a bunch of people who shouldnt be driving if they cant read signs.

[astrohip]

Originally Posted by FredfromFL

Don't believe I have ever been on a toll road that, at some point or points did not have a toll booth.

Then you don't drive on toll roads much. Many newer toll roads are EZTag only, not just in Houston, but all around the country.

[mikeyyc]

Originally Posted by FredfromFL

Passed through Houston week before last. Not being used to the EZPay system, my inadvertant straying into forbidden territory, without an obvious means of escape, set me to looking for a toll booth. Don't believe I have ever been on a toll road that, at some point or points did not have a toll booth. Needless to say I was surprised two days ago when I received an invoice for THREE violations at intersections I wouldn't know from Adam's housecat. I will pay the penalty, no doubt, but it will be a cold day in hell before I come back through Houston again. Needless to say it was one of the low points in our 5,800-mile trip from Florida to California and back.

I guess the giant purple signs that designate a toll road, and the equally giant black and yellow signs that say EZ-TAG ONLY aren't clear enough? Here's a future tip. If you don't know what an EZ Tag is, you probably don't have one, and shouldn't be using the toll road. If you do, you could be pro-active and do a two second google search to come up with who to contact to make sure you don't have multiple fines and charges, and likely pay just the cost of the toll.