OT - Rental Cars Without Toll Transponders

[DerbyDad03]

Does anyone know what actually happens if you go through a "transponder only" toll station in a rental car without a transponder?

On a recent vacation in CA, I found myself approaching the Golden Gate Bridge in an Enterprise rental. There are no toll collectors on this bridge, only transponder lanes.

After I got home, I read the rules found here but I was already well beyond the "pay within 48 hours" time frame.

I'm considering calling Enterprise discuss this, even though I am well beyond the mailing of the violation letter that I assume went to Enterprise. I just figured I'd run the question by the ng first to see if anyone has some real life experience/advice for this type of situation.

Thanks.

[Joe]

Same thing happened to me in Orlando. Hit an unattended exit toll booth on 429 at Winter Garden that only takes exact change or transponder. I had neither. All I had was my driver's license and a Disney MagicBand thingy.

Anyway, turned myself in a couple days later at the Enterprise return desk at the end of my vacation. Paid the exact toll, no late penalty was assessed.

You were in California though so YMMV. ;-)

[gfretwell]

You get a message from the rental car company but they have already billed your credit card. There is a significant service fee. Happened to me on the bypass in Denver. That little short cut to the airport cost me over $30. (maybe more like $40) I know I was pretty unhappy but what are you going to do? "Toll by plate" costs you about 2.5x the price of the transponder toll here in Florida too. I still do not use toll roads enough to justify a transponder but I did escrow some money in a TBP account that cuts the billing fee. I would be surprised that the rental company doesn't do that and still charge you the whole fee, along with a service charge. They are notorious for adding extra charges to that bargain rate they advertise.

[DerbyDad03]

Well, that's not what happened. I should have checked my credit card statement before I posted my question.

Enterprise charged me $11.45 for a $7.50 toll. i.e. $3.95 extra.

All they did was charge me the toll and the cost of a single day's rental of the transponder. No penalty.

Their transponder rental fee is $3.95 per day from the first usage. Since all other tolls while I was in CA were paid by cash or by using the transponder of the folks we were visiting, the final trip to the airport was the only time I was exposed. So in retrospect, it looks like they "auto-rented" me a transponder for a single day since the "first usage" occurred on the last day of the rental period.

The charge hit my card way outside the 48 hour window that the CA Toll Authority states, but it doesn't look like Enterprise (or CA?) really cares.

Perhaps there will be a penalty accessed later if CA bills Enterprise. I'll let you know if that happens.

[gfretwell]

Maybe the rental car companies are better equipped to deal with these toll by plate charges these days. It was a pretty new concept when I was in Colorado. Denver may also be harder to get along with.

[Frank]

They will have a picture of the car's license plate and send the fine to Enterprise. I'd only be concerned if they want you to pay it. I got stuck in one of these lanes, was ill at the time, got request for $1 + $25 fine. Paid the dollar but they would not accept my excuse until I sent them a photo of the new zipper on my chest needed to cure the problem. You also have an excellent excuse if it comes to that.

[DerbyDad03]

If you read my response to Greg, you'll see that they didn't charge me anything extra. Just the toll and a one day rental fee on a non-existent transponder. They charged my CC without asking, but I'm sure that was covered in the rental contract that I read in it's entirety before signing it. ;-)

As an aside, after I signed the 2 foot long receipt that Enterprise's CC machine printed out, I shoved it in my pocket. Later, when I had a chance to read it, I was surprised at what I signed. Apparently I had entered into a short term lease for the sole purpose of obtaining a substitute vehicle because a vehicle that was registered in my name had been damaged to the extent that my insurance company had deemed it undriveable. I don't know where that assumption came from considering I simply made a reservation through Kayak.

[DerbyDad03]

OK, I found the wording and the reason. Apparently I was attesting to the fact that I was not trying beat Nevada out of the 2% county imposed rental fee. By stating that the vehicle I rented was a replacement vehicle, I was not subject to the 2% fee. Of course, I now realize that I actually was (in a legal sense) trying to beat NV out the fee because I made a false att estation.

Per this site:

*** Begin Included Text ***

Effective July 1, 2005 Clark County Board of Commissioners enacted a 2% Cou nty Car Rental Fee for the lease of passenger vehicles commencing in Clark Coun ty. ... The County Car Rental fee cannot be imposed on the rental of a replacement vehicle, defined as ... - A vehicle that is used by a person in place of a motor vehicle owned by the person which is unavailable for use because of mechanical breakdown, repair, service, damage or loss as defined in the owner?s policy of liability insurance for the motor vehicle.

*** End Included Text ***

Again, I don't know why that attestation was on my receipt since that was not the case. I was never even asked *why* I was renting the vehicle. I'm not complaining since it saved me $5.26, which more than covered the $3.95 transponder rental fee. ;-)

I wonder if I'll get arrested the next time I cross the border into Clark County, NV.

[Tekkie®]

DerbyDad03 posted for all of us...

Oren, get the cuffs out. He's going down.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Maybe the transponder was in place?

Enterprise does a lot of rentals for cars in accidents. Maybe they used that form instead of the other regular one. I did see your photo in the Las Vegas Post Office though.

[DerbyDad03]

I don't think so since I didn't get charged for the times I went through using the transponder of the friends we were visiting in CA. I assume that both of them would have been read, unless they only "accept" one?

Oh, that's been there for a while. Totally different situation.

[Charles Bishop]

There's no fine associated with crossing the bridge, only a toll.

However the rental place may charge a fee for paying the toll.

I was there recently as well, but didn't cross the bridge and we had a private car.

Derby is correct that you can pay the toll by phone, or on line, but there is a limited amount of time. A friend, some time ago tried to pay on line and it was difficult. And, of course, with a private car they send an invoice for the toll to the registered owner's address.

I suspect Derby will have to talk to Enterprise, pay the toll and the "fee". He might talk Enterprise into reducing the fee as a favor, especially if he has rented from them before.

[Charles Bishop]

[snip]

Now I wonder why you rented the vehicle in Clark County if you're not going back>

[DerbyDad03]

Really? You never heard of renting a vehicle at one location and returning it at another?

[DerbyDad03]

Sure there is.

From:

"Any unpaid Toll Invoice or unpaid portion of a Toll Invoice leads directly to a Toll Violation notice which attaches a $25 penalty for each toll transaction associated with the unpaid Toll Invoice. If the first Toll Violation notice goes unpaid, a second Toll Violation notice is issued (with increased penalties) and if it goes unpaid, the amount due is referred to the DMV who will withhold your vehicle registration until the penalties are paid. For out-of-state vehicles, the matter is referred to a collections agency."

[Charles Bishop]

Well, I had, but wondered.

[Charles Bishop]

But that's a fine if you don't pay the toll (in a timely manner). If you pay the toll, there's no fine associated with the toll. Splitting hairs, if you will.

I was at the bridge last week and there is a sign[1] that tells how to pay the toll, phone, internet, or mailed invoice. The last is for personal cars, not rentals.

As you say, you missed the deadline for using phone or internet and had to rely on the rental company, which looks to have not charged a fine, but only a "rental" of the transponder, which looks to be cheap.

[1] on a walkway which doesn't do much good for those crossing the bridge, southbound.

[gfretwell]

My bet is the state has an arrangement with the rental car companies. If they get a transponder rental fee every time someone passes a toll booth, it is not a bad deal for the state. My bet is it is just one computer talking to another so labor is not a big deal.

[DerbyDad03]

I have no reason to believe that the $3.95 rental fee was passed on to the state. Why would Enterprise give it up? They would have to work to make that happen since they are the entity that charged my card, so there is some programming/software maintenance involved. I doubt they would do that for free. Maybe a portion went to the sate, but certainly not the entire fee.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Rental companies cannot afford to have fines and registration problems over a $4 toll.