Hi everyone,

We just received via mail a ticket (we live in Canada) issued by photo-radar for speeding (near Santiago de Compostelo). I understand we're responsible for the car but its very possible the car was valet parked when the ticket was issued. (And the licence plate number does belong to our rented car).

Is there any point in disputing the ticket?

Mike,

If the ticket is not issued to your car then I would definitely dispute it. Probably the rental agency made a mistake when they furnished the information.

This is a good lesson to make sure I have the license place of rental cars in the future.

I would contact the rental agency and see if they can steaighten it out. We had a situation with an electronic ticket in the same area of Spain.

" licence plate number DOES belong to our rented car"

My caps.

If the car rental place has your CC#, might they end up paying it and charging you?

Sorry - I read it wrong. You need to pay the ticket.

If the speeding ticket is time stamped and you have a receipt for the valet parking, I'd dispute it.
The cost of the fine may impact how much effort you want to make.

You will probably get an administration fee from the rental car company for the ticket. It is usually part of the agreement. Just out of curiosity what was the name of the town?

Our ticket didn't have an address to send the payment. Avis told us to call Spanish tourism bureau in NYC. The man who answered said he drives faster than that in Spain which was strange. In the end, we ignored it as we had no address.

I just had the same problem in The Netherlands and another long time poster had the same problem in Germany.

I was going 3 mph over the limit and I think Peg was also was just a miles over the limit.

If this becomes an epidemic across Europe, it will discourage visitors from renting cars.

Spain has several area's where they have set up camera's the last fewl years simply to raise revenue. We came across one outside of Jaca on the N-240 a few years ago. The speed limit went from 120 to 70 and back up to 120 in less the 50 meters, around a blind corner. The price, €200 EUR, payable to the Guardia Civil in Huesca.

Other areas have increased the tolls, much easier than trying to collect speeding tickets from someone outside the EU. It may be difficult for you to pay since you are from Canada and don't have an IDN, which is required, but you can try.

I guess the only epidemic is that rather than giving up at the border european organisations are now chasing those that speed over the border.

I'd be interested to know what happens at US state borders or indeed do Canadians get chased down for their US traffic violations.

Still, I also struggle to keep to speed limits and have programmed my car to "ping" if I go over the official speed, maybe others can too?

First off the ticket will state a time and date. If you were renting the car at the time and date you will have to pay the fine.
The rental company will send you a bill for forwarding your details to the local authorises.
You can pay on line at this web page.
https://apl.dgt.es/migracion_IWPS.html - Para acceso sin certificado digital

Here is an explanation on how make a payment.
http://www.mamunahmed.com/08/speed-c...#comment-41992
Note: sometimes your browser will question if the DGT website is safe. Either change browsers or click to say it is ok. This happens a lot with Spanish government websites.

The question one has to ask is what are the ramifications if the fine is not paid. That is unclear at the moment. laws are changing all the time. Some say pay and you will have a clear conscious.

I say pay because it is the law, this whole thing of "taxes and laws are down to debate" is how you end up with nonsense countries

"If this becomes an epidemic across Europe, it will discourage visitors from renting cars."

Believe me, the impact on furriners renting cars in Europe is never mentioned when speed cameras are propsed. I expect there is also little mention of tourism when open carry laws are discussed.

I also wonder how many valet parking drivers in Santiago de Compostella get an opportunity to speed. If they don't know where the cameras are, nobody does.

I expect there is also little mention of tourism when open carry laws are discussed.

It all depends if you are talking about Bourbon St or Salt Lake City?

I am surprised that this car was caught on a speed camera unless it was a mobile one.
http://mapas.race.es/
Then "buscar" Aeropuerto Internacional De Santiago De Compostela.
Tick the box "Radares" ans scrollout. There are very few fixed positions in the area.

Slightly OT but I never use Valet parking with a rental car for insurance reasons. I assume if the car is in an accident it would be a nightmare to figure out the insurance implications for a driver not named on the rental agreement. Others do the same?

I can't imagine why people find it so difficult to respect the speed limit.

kerouac, having been caught speeding in the UK I got the chance to be re-educated in speed awareness rather than "take points on my licence". As a result I got to spend a day with the ex-chief constable for Lancashire who put 95% of all speeding down to in-attention and a "just not being aware" of how nasty it is to kill a small child.

Made me think....

<I'd be interested to know what happens at US state borders or indeed do Canadians get chased down for their US traffic violations>

No! There are no federal traffic laws in the US, only international commerce rules and regulations. Each state is different and independent when it comes to such matters. Speed limits on Federal Highways are regulated to what each State believes it can live with, so when you drive in Idaho or Montana, the speeds are far greater than what is allowed in parts of New York, Washington State, or Georgia.

Canadians are free if they break a minor traffic law, and receive a ticket, as long as they do not get stopped by the State Patrol or local police for some infraction at a later date. States do not share such information, but some border states may share the information to the US Border Patrol but there is no formal process regarding traffic violations. If you receive a speeding ticked from a state where you do not reside, they have no power to force you to pay the fine. Just don't return and get stopped for some reason.