I wanted to add that if your credit card expires, EZ pass doesn't notify you. Even Netflix notifies you! It happened to me that our cc on file was compromised and we had to get the new one and then I got couple of bills in mail, I called and asked them to update it as soon as a got a new credit card and asked how come they don't automatically notify people, and the answer was, "we don't do that." This is clearly meant to screw people over and pile up bills make huge fines. But, I have to say that 7K in fines is being irresponsible, especially as we all know EZ pass is a shady business organization and we must approach it as such, use at your own risk!

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it is pilong on. The fact is the vast majority of EZ Pass users have no problems or if they have a problem or is cleared up quickly. In the years of using EZ PAss we have never had a problem that wasn't cleared up quickly and easily. Most recently we ended up on a toll road (no toll booths) outside Toronto and was easily tracked down via our EZ Pass. Once we received the notice we paid. I am just confused on how you get 50 violations which you know about, continue to use EZ pass while you are clearly having a problem and just don't call. Not to mention. That OP said BOTH license plates were inputed incorrectly. Not sure how EZ pass can help people who can't input their own information correctly.

This is BS on levels. First of all, this isn't unusual, one google search for ez pass fines gives you just the latest: https://www.google.com/search?q=ez+pass+fines&oq=ez+pass+fines&aqs=chrome..69i57.2429j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#q=ez+pass+fines&tbm=nws

OP certainly should have been more on top of it. Anyone getting a fine from EZPass made an error of some type. But if I get a parking ticket in Alexandria for 40 bucks and don't pay it then after 30 days it becomes 65, then it doubles to 130, then I think another fine is added, lets call it 50 bucks and it is sent to collections or deducted from my VA tax return. Acting very irresponsible never turns that initial minor victimless crime into something that could bankrupt my family. It does get a little steep but there is a ceiling, and generally the final fine is never going to be more than like 400% of the original fine.

I only accidentally went through a $1 toll without my ezpass by mistake on the express lanes. It became a $120 fine within 3 months! I don't even know how much a percentage growth that is. EZPass hasn't been inconvenienced $100 worth because I ran a toll by accident. This is not enforcement, this is profiting off of the public.

EZPass is predatory and a local monopoly.

I don't think it is pilong on. The fact is the vast majority of EZ Pass users have no problems or if they have a problem or is cleared up quickly. In the years of using EZ PAss we have never had a problem that wasn't cleared up quickly and easily. Most recently we ended up on a toll road (no toll booths) outside Toronto and was easily tracked down via our EZ Pass. Once we received the notice we paid. I am just confused on how you get 50 violations which you know about, continue to use EZ pass while you are clearly having a problem and just don't call. Not to mention. That OP said BOTH license plates were inputed incorrectly. Not sure how EZ pass can help people who can't input their own information correctly.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's ezpass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the va fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my ezpass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the ezpass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that ezpass in va is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

Totally agree. It's been said before that DCUM is filled with "hall monitor" types and that is so true. I think all the lawyers leads to a "blame the victim", "that wouldn't happen to me because I'm a better person, more responsible, blah blah blah". I totally agree with you - it's usury on the part of EZPass and the fines should not be so disproportional to the error.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just logged into my EZ pass account and realized only one of our two cars is in there and it is an old license plate from when we lived in DC - and we moved in 2015. And we've never had an issue! We've used it in two cars and neither has their license plate number in the account. I'll be updating that today.

I just logged in and the last vehicle on our account we got rid of in 2010. This is our third car since then. Never had a problem.

You are fine until the system does not read your transponder at some point..then you are not fine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's EZ Pass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the VA fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my EZ Pass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the EZ Pass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that EZ Pass in VA is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

I am the one that made the point about the OP not returning, but the reality is if you are going to seek advice, sympathy, or just need to vent, don't hide after you get put in your place.

I can also tell a trick about EZ Pass. I went to Ohio recently, and there is a toll from the Ohio line to I-79 that if you were paying cash is $7. I had not been on that stretch of road in years, and the last time I was on it, it was $3. I have an EZ Pass (from VA). I had added funds when I left VA, and knew what my tolls would cost, except for that one as I forgot they charged eastbound and not westbound. Also, because the PA Turnpike was shut down at one of the Pittsburgh exits, I had to get off the turnpike earlier and that threw off my planned toll cost. I got home, looked at my account, and saw nothing was charged yet. I added $5 to my account, and that covered all the tolls. I have checked multiple times since and everything is where it should be. So, you can add funds after the fact, as long as you haven't been charged. The VA express lanes usually take 5 days before a charge posts, but MD, DE, PA, OH tend to post within a day or two.

VA mails out letters multiple times before the fines hit 3 and 4 figures. The OP (and her husband) flat out ignored it and is paying the price and will get embarrassed in court. It is the same principle as ignoring parking tickets. Also, people should be checking their account once a week anyway, just to make sure nothing is off. It takes 30 seconds to log in and check your account. The license plates are a back up in case the transponder doesn't work, as some people don't place it in the right place or think holding it up when you drive underneath the reader will work.

Our family has personal experience with this.

In summary EZ Pass is a TERRIBLE TERRIBLE inefficient poorly run sorry excuse for a huge bloated organization supported by our money.
I am not anti government at all but that whole organization is terrible - from their poorly organized 16 page bills they send when you owe $4 to the fact that no one there does their work, shows up for work regularly or knows what they are doing or has any amount of respect for the human beings they serve.

Anyway... We were in a similar bind for an absolutely ridiculous reason. Having tried to discuss and resolve the issue with many different layers of employees over many weeks I found the organization to be described as above.

We finally started calling politicians when we were also going to be sent to court. We're caring for a family member with cancer, a different family member with severe disabilities and we're flat broke and tired doing that - I'm not going to court due to some organizations incompetence and our family does not have the funds to personally build a section of public road.

Chris Van Hollen's office sent some faxes to the correct people - done.

Good luck. Make some noise!!! Do what you have to to get someone on your side.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's ezpass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the va fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my ezpass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the ezpass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that ezpass in va is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

I agree with you that it is predatory and outrageous. That said, I also think that what OP's husband did was flat out irresponsible and there should be fines and penalties, just not to that extent. OP's husband got 50 fees, saw them on-line, tried to appeal, saw that the appeals were rejected and just ignored them instead of picking up the phone and calling. OP found out more from just one call to EZ Pass than he had done in months of negligently ignoring what he saw on-line. That's just stupid and incompetent. He deserves fines and penalties because he flagrantly ignored payment requests and notices that his transponder was not recording charges correctly and early penalties until the matter was shipped to collections.

I don't think a single poster is saying they don't deserve to be paying some fines. I thought my NJ turnpike fine was warranted. But 7000 is completely insane.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's ezpass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the va fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my ezpass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the ezpass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that ezpass in va is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

I agree with you that it is predatory and outrageous. That said, I also think that what OP's husband did was flat out irresponsible and there should be fines and penalties, just not to that extent. OP's husband got 50 fees, saw them on-line, tried to appeal, saw that the appeals were rejected and just ignored them instead of picking up the phone and calling. OP found out more from just one call to EZ Pass than he had done in months of negligently ignoring what he saw on-line. That's just stupid and incompetent. He deserves fines and penalties because he flagrantly ignored payment requests and notices that his transponder was not recording charges correctly and early penalties until the matter was shipped to collections.

There are several attorneys who have been blasting EZ Pass in court. One is David Bernhard -- you can google for more. See one of them and see if they can help you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's ezpass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the va fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my ezpass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the ezpass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that ezpass in va is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

It's basically predatory and usury.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I think you all like to pile on people like this and it let's ezpass get away with this crap.

The fact that an error with an account that was fully funded could result in a 7k fine is obscene and totally representative of how evil the va fines are.

I once went through the NJ turnpike with no funds on my ezpass and was super irresponsible about taking care of it and so the original $13 toll ended up being like $160 bucks. That sucks but I let it sit for months so I deserve it. But is there any scenario where it would be reasonable for that to become $1000????

Think about a poor family who made this mistake and inadvertently got like a $300 fine before they realized it. They chose a car payment they need to keep their job instead of the ezpass ticket and it just continues to multiply. That could literally bankrupt them!

The reality is that ezpass in va is trying to pay for their unprofitable express lanes by preying on the public and you all are letting this happen by harping on specific cases instead of looking at the big predatory picture.

Anonymous wrote:I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

She is embarrassed or disappointed people are not sympathetic to her situation.

I wonder why OP has yet to return to this thread.

Anonymous wrote:I just logged into my EZ pass account and realized only one of our two cars is in there and it is an old license plate from when we lived in DC - and we moved in 2015. And we've never had an issue! We've used it in two cars and neither has their license plate number in the account. I'll be updating that today.

I just logged in and the last vehicle on our account we got rid of in 2010. This is our third car since then. Never had a problem.