m50 toll

old boy

a mate of mine recieved a letter from the toll people saying that his car went through the barrier or whatever its called, last thursday night at 10:31, it was a four page document promising a 3,000 euro fine etc, problem is he was at home in limerick at the time with his car securely parked, he contacted them, but the jist of the call seemed to be it would be easier for him to shell out and keep smileing, i wonder how many cars are out there with false plates

ednwireland

yep quite common way of avoiding the congestion charge in london apparantly people all over the country get bills i'd ring the guards and ask them what to do myself before shelling out

Darragh29

old boy wrote: »

a mate of mine recieved a letter from the toll people saying that his car went through the barrier or whatever its called, last thursday night at 10:31, it was a four page document promising a 3,000 euro fine etc, problem is he was at home in limerick at the time with his car securely parked, he contacted them, but the jist of the call seemed to be it would be easier for him to shell out and keep smileing, i wonder how many cars are out there with false plates

I reckon the technology isn't as accurate as we are led to believe. I'd contest that all the way, things like mucky plates, faded plates, etc, these factors must lead to the wrong vehicles being selected for billing. I imagine they have a system where if a plate can be automatically read, grand, but if it can't, then a screen shot is captured and sent to a human operator to try to make sense of the reg plate.

R.O.R

They can provide still shots from the Video cameras - I'd be on to them to get the proof through for this.

drunkmonkey

I've had to call to pay a toll 2 times, every time i've got through to an English Bloke...

Where's the call payment center, I'd hate to think i'm sending my hard earned cash across the pond that would just add insult to injury....

cormie

I also got a 4 page letter (what a waste of paper!!) saying I owed them for a trip through the toll. When I go to the website, it says I owe them €5.10, the price for a vehicle over 2t in weight. When I first found this out, I saw my van weight 2020KG on my reg docket, so I got it weighed again and it came at 1980KG, went to tax office, got new tax disc, new DOE cert and sent off the reg book to shannon and got a new one with the right weight. It's still showing up saying I owe €5.10!! I've done what I need to, I'm not paying €5.10. No judge is going to force me to pay a fine for not paying the wrong price. I hope

I'm not paying until it's the right price anyway so it should be interesting to see what happens.

Robbo

cormie wrote: »

I also got a 4 page letter (what a waste of paper!!) saying I owed them for a trip through the toll. When I go to the website, it says I owe them €5.10, the price for a vehicle over 2t in weight. When I first found this out, I saw my van weight 2020KG on my reg docket, so I got it weighed again and it came at 1980KG, went to tax office, got new tax disc, new DOE cert and sent off the reg book to shannon and got a new one with the right weight. It's still showing up saying I owe €5.10!! I've done what I need to, I'm not paying €5.10. No judge is going to force me to pay a fine for not paying the wrong price. I hope

I'm not paying until it's the right price anyway so it should be interesting to see what happens.

So you had the vehicle incorrectly registered, ammended this, neglected to tell them of said change and it's their fault you owe a couple of quid more than you think you should? Use a bit of initiative.

cormie

I didn't register the vehicle. I bought it that way, it was never a problem until now. 1980 compared to 2020 doesn't make a difference in any tax category or anything, seems to be just the M50.

Oh and I told them as soon as I changed it to 1980.

Run_to_da_hills

old boy wrote: »

a mate of mine recieved a letter from the toll people saying that his car went through the barrier or whatever its called, last thursday night at 10:31, it was a four page document promising a 3,000 euro fine etc, problem is he was at home in limerick at the time with his car securely parked, he contacted them, but the jist of the call seemed to be it would be easier for him to shell out and keep smileing, i wonder how many cars are out there with false plates

This is one of the great weaknesses of an ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) system, i.e. it is wide open for abuse. As in London, selling stolen plates is currently a big racket.

Those particularly vulnerable would be businesses that have cars for sale in large compounds and people that are foolish enough to display their registrations on picture advertisements. The culprits that steal these registration numbers and make knock off copies of the plates knowing that these cars are "off the road" and will not pe picked up as duplicates by the ANPR cameras for a period of time.

Anyone with a similar BMW 220 I 2 Door can copy this registration from this add knowing that It wont be reported by its owner in the foreseeable future. http://www.merlinmotorcity.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=Car&carID=1195417&message=Your%20search%20returned%20one%20vehicle%2C%20which%20is%20shown%20below%2E&CFID=85428632&CFTOKEN=30931969

The Toll bridge computer system is a very intelligent system that will sound alarm bells if the same registration passes the toll in the same direction in over a short period of time particularly if it dose not make a return in the opposite direction. It can automatically warn the NRA of a possible duplicate registration and subsequently inform the Gardai.

The only way this toll bridge will become efficient and fool proof is to eventually get everyone in the country to accept the electronic E_tag. I see the current ANPR options as just temporary measure between the old cash system and the full blown EFT system. The NRA will keep on penalising Non E_tagged motorists for not complying with exorbitant surcharges until such time as everyone in the country will all submit to it.

_Kaiser_

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I've had to call to pay a toll 2 times, every time i've got through to an English Bloke...

Where's the call payment center, I'd hate to think i'm sending my hard earned cash across the pond that would just add insult to injury....

I read over on Commuting/Transport (I think it was) that the callcentre is indeed outsourced to beyond these shores

racso1975

Call centre was outsourced to northern ireland hence the reason all the toll workers got let go.....they had assumed they would be assigned to these duties

jimmycrackcorm

It was reported that the ANPR had difficulty with certain digit combinations such as 0 and 8. It could simply be a mis-read of the plate.

Run_to_da_hills

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

It was reported that the ANPR had difficulty with certain digit combinations such as 0 and 8. It could simply be a mis-read of the plate.

This problem has also got to do with plastic black mounting bolts "intentionally" positioned between the 0 and other numbers to confuse the system. One of the current mandates for the NCT is to scrutinise how number plates are mounted and fail subsequent offenders.

Seth Brundle

Back on topic, the OP needen't worry - the NRA have an independant appeals process in place chaired by...
...the NRA!
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/0829/1219875241810.html

Esel

cormie wrote: »

I'm not paying until it's the right price anyway so it should be interesting to see what happens.

Fight the powah, Cormie!

You should pay what you think you owe, just to confuse their automated systems and possibly prevent escalation of charges while there is an amount outstanding.

mcwhirter

racso1975 wrote: »

Call centre was outsourced to northern ireland hence the reason all the toll workers got let go.....they had assumed they would be assigned to these duties

If they weren't so rude then maybe they would have been kept on elsewhere.
The M1 toll barriers operators are much more pleasant than those m50 monsters.

miju

I've gone through the toll 4 times in the last two weeks and I ain't been billed for any of the trips

Am registered for video recognition and nothing has appeared on my card or arrived at my door. I must ring them up and make sure I pay that toll

drunkmonkey

racso1975 wrote: »

Call centre was outsourced to northern ireland hence the reason all the toll workers got let go.....they had assumed they would be assigned to these duties

I don't get it, were on the brink of a recession, people are loosing there jobs every day and the government decides it would be best send jobs (400 of them) outside the state...
Dublin might be an expensive place to locate staff but surley there's some county down the country that could have done with the jobs...
It's disgracefull conduct and another reason why the 100,000 people who pass through the Toll today should refuse to pay, it's not like they can send the whole country to jail for not paying €3....

fjon

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I don't get it, were on the brink of a recession, people are loosing there jobs every day and the government decides it would be best send jobs (400 of them) outside the state...

400? That can't be right

Kashkai

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I don't get it, were on the brink of a recession, people are loosing there jobs every day and the government decides it would be best send jobs (400 of them) outside the state...
Dublin might be an expensive place to locate staff but surley there's some county down the country that could have done with the jobs...
It's disgracefull conduct and another reason why the 100,000 people who pass through the Toll today should refuse to pay, it's not like they can send the whole country to jail for not paying €3....

Thats an idea that a lot of people have had but due to the general apathy of the Irish, we'll just continue to act like sheep and pay what we're told by our 'betters'.

I'd love to see everyone refusing to pay the toll though just to see how the powers that be would react, e.g., bring us all to court, close the M50.

drunkmonkey

fjon wrote: »

400? That can't be right

That's what it said in the indo, 400 call center jobs, they have people working 24/7

Barty

old boy wrote: »

the jist of the call seemed to be it would be easier for him to shell out and keep smileing

OP - I hope your mate is not going to pay the toll? That is so ridiculous, suggesting to someone that even though they didn't use a service that they should pay for it.
I know some people may look at it as it's only €3, it's easier to pay it than try and prove that it wasn't you that went through the toll but personally I would definitely not pay it.

A mate of mine was contacted by the gardai a couple of years back saying his car was reported as driving dangerously (overtaking 4 cars coming up to a sharp bend) - he asked when it was and as it happens he was out of the country at the time with his car parked up in the airport. He was able to get the footage from the carpark security showing his car going into and leaving the carpark. No chance your mate has a security camera on his drive

Guy:Incognito

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Dublin might be an expensive place to locate staff but surley there's some county down the country that could have done with the jobs.....

Obviously there wasnt any interested company that was competitive enough to get it here. These thigns go to tender. If the government handed it to a more expensive company because they are Irish people would be whinging about the needless overpaying of staff.

If no one in this country felt it was viable enough to buy/build a big room and run as a call centre then it musnt be.

faceman

racso1975 wrote: »

Call centre was outsourced to northern ireland hence the reason all the toll workers got let go.....they had assumed they would be assigned to these duties

Im not saying you are lying but this is the first i heard of this. What source did you hear that from? links?

EDIT: i just read Sizzler's link so no need to respond

Sizzler

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I've had to call to pay a toll 2 times, every time i've got through to an English Bloke...

Where's the call payment center, I'd hate to think i'm sending my hard earned cash across the pond that would just add insult to injury....

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/13568639?view=Eircomnet

drunkmonkey

Sizzler wrote: »

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/13568639?view=Eircomnet

they let 120 Irish go and employes 400 English, i'm not been racist but that's plain stupid especially in the current climate....If the NRA were looking to save money they should have at least got us really cheap labour and value for money in China or India....
All politicans shoud be lined up and shot in pairs to save bullets....there thiefs and nothing more....I think we should spare Liz O'Donnell just becuase she's hot....the rest can swing..

cormie

Ahw I just checked Eflows site again and put my reg in and it's coming up right now. Suppose I better pay

Was looking forward to a bit of good oul fashioned rebellion!

Although it's still letting me pay for an infinite amount of passages and has no definition of what I actually owe:mad:

peasant

we're having a parallel discussion on two threads here (can't merge them unfortunatly).

This one is now closed, please use the stickied one