Crispy Ambulance
Well-known member
Dear great and good of NSC
I wonder if you could advise how my youngest son (aged 21) can get erroneous toll charges cancelled and stopped.
On 12th June this year, he was surpised to receive 2 separate Notices from a company called Eflow informing him that his car had used the M50 Toll in Dublin on 4 occasions and he had not paid for the journeys. They provided photos showing his car numberplate and the make and model of his car, as well as the dates and times the photos were taken (mostly in the middle of the night). His 'surprise' was due to the fact that a) he's never been to Dublin (or anywhere in Eire) and, b), since buying the car in October 2022, it has never been to Eire either. The Notice requested he made payment to Euro Parking Collection plc. It also provided an address in case he wished to appeal in writing.
On 14th June, he sent them a letter informing them that he'd never been to Eire and neither had his car since he bought it. He also advised them that, on 3 of the dates/times, the car was parked on the drive outside his home in Burgess Hill and, on one date/time, it was parked in a secure car park at Gatwick where he works.
He continued to receive additional letters/charges showing new dates/times 'his' car was snapped on the M50 Toll and rang Eflow who told him it can take up to a couple of months for correspondence to be answered. In the meantime, he contacted Sussex Police and explained the situation. They informed him that he would need to contact the Garda as it was out of their jurisdiction, which he duly did both by phone, and email. They, in turn, forwarded his email to their department who deal with cloned vehicles but he still hasn't heard anything.
Today, he received another letter from EPCplc (dated 22nd August) informing him that his appeal has been rejected as 'it remains the responsibility of any motorist, regardless of their nationality or if they live abroad and drive within the relevant jurisdiction of the issuing organisation, to familiarise themselves with the regulatory road signs'. (Bit f***ing difficult when you've never been to the country in the first place!). They won't entertain any further communication which doesn't contain new pertinent information or evidence and have extended his payment due date by 28 days. The total for charges and late payment fees currently amounts to around £400!
He's sent another email off to the Dublin roads policing people today but, as yet, not received anything back.
There's clearly a cloned vehicle driving around Dublin incurring toll charges galore and these will presumably continue until such time as the Garda take action
In the meantime, is there anything else you can suggest he does?
Many thanks for your advice.
I wonder if you could advise how my youngest son (aged 21) can get erroneous toll charges cancelled and stopped.
On 12th June this year, he was surpised to receive 2 separate Notices from a company called Eflow informing him that his car had used the M50 Toll in Dublin on 4 occasions and he had not paid for the journeys. They provided photos showing his car numberplate and the make and model of his car, as well as the dates and times the photos were taken (mostly in the middle of the night). His 'surprise' was due to the fact that a) he's never been to Dublin (or anywhere in Eire) and, b), since buying the car in October 2022, it has never been to Eire either. The Notice requested he made payment to Euro Parking Collection plc. It also provided an address in case he wished to appeal in writing.
On 14th June, he sent them a letter informing them that he'd never been to Eire and neither had his car since he bought it. He also advised them that, on 3 of the dates/times, the car was parked on the drive outside his home in Burgess Hill and, on one date/time, it was parked in a secure car park at Gatwick where he works.
He continued to receive additional letters/charges showing new dates/times 'his' car was snapped on the M50 Toll and rang Eflow who told him it can take up to a couple of months for correspondence to be answered. In the meantime, he contacted Sussex Police and explained the situation. They informed him that he would need to contact the Garda as it was out of their jurisdiction, which he duly did both by phone, and email. They, in turn, forwarded his email to their department who deal with cloned vehicles but he still hasn't heard anything.
Today, he received another letter from EPCplc (dated 22nd August) informing him that his appeal has been rejected as 'it remains the responsibility of any motorist, regardless of their nationality or if they live abroad and drive within the relevant jurisdiction of the issuing organisation, to familiarise themselves with the regulatory road signs'. (Bit f***ing difficult when you've never been to the country in the first place!). They won't entertain any further communication which doesn't contain new pertinent information or evidence and have extended his payment due date by 28 days. The total for charges and late payment fees currently amounts to around £400!
He's sent another email off to the Dublin roads policing people today but, as yet, not received anything back.
There's clearly a cloned vehicle driving around Dublin incurring toll charges galore and these will presumably continue until such time as the Garda take action
In the meantime, is there anything else you can suggest he does?
Many thanks for your advice.