scoff

Just curious if everyone else's experience is the same as mine re parking tickets on rental cars.

In short, I never pay them. If I've rented a car and received a parking ticket on it, I just throw the ticket away -- and I've done it several times without ever hearing about it from the rental agency.

Please spare me any lectures about how I'm immoral or unethical. (Sorry, I just don't equate morality or ethics with forking over $20 to some municipality that's going to throw the money down a rathole anyway.) Just wondering: Do you pay parking tickets on rental cars? If you don't, has anyone ever come after you for the $?

Merilee

I'm curious about the car rental agency you use because the agencies I've used have a form they make you sign indicating that you are responsible for all traffic tickets and that if you don't pay them, they will put the charge on your credit card. I think it's Enterprise that keeps your name in their database for future rentals if you get tickets with one of their cars.

JJ

You don't get to declare yourself immune from ethics issue just because you want to or it "only " involves x-number of dollars. I guarantee, if your least favorite in-law borrowed $20 from you, you wouldn't forget it and it would bug you until you got the money back.

And if your standard of ethics is simply whether you get caught or not, eventually you will be caught -- the rental companies are cracking down.

If everyone's integrity has a price, yours is incredibly low. Turkey!

Marie

The name "scoff" says it all.

He figures he can park illegally everywhere and then ignore tickets if issued.

He is NOT interested in ethics here, only whether or not anyone will come after him eventually.

Of course, those of us who do not park illegally don't get tickets. And, those of us who pay our parking tickets, are unable to offer advice.

Lou

Hey scoff, I coulda told ya that you'd get piled on for those comments. Seems Fodorites are, collectively, a very straight laced bunch. I agree with your take on parking tix. I don't pay them even when I'm in my own rig if I'm outta town. Just a waste.

Joik

Hey, Lou and Scoff -- it's indeed a waste, because the rest of us eventually have to make up the difference AND we don't have the parking space you illegally occupied.

Rules apply to everyone but you? And they wonder how Enron collapsed..... You're both a$$holes who make the world just that much crummier a place.

kkj

Fine, don't pay them. When they come after you let us know. Then I'll share the story about my friend Earl who was arrested for the same offense.

By the way, if I had a parking ticket, I would pay it. But, then I have ethics.

Kris

When I travel I don't park in handicap areas, or in no parking zones, or loading zones, etc. BUT if I should get a ticket for an expired meter that I didn't get back to in time, I don't pay it. I guess I'm just a horrible person who will be responsible for the demise of the economy of the city that I'm visiting.

x

At least with Hertz rental cars, I have known several people who were tracked down and sent fine notices at home.

I have only gotten one, and they had a nice trick to get you to pay immediately. The fine was 50% less if you paid it the first day.

x

Please guys, stop getting so worked up. Don't you know today is bring your favorite TROLL to Fodors day?

James

Scoff also doesn't believe that not paying child support has nothing to do with ethics or morality, because the mother of his children will just spend that money on things like food and toilet paper.

x

And then scoff wants to know why his municipal taxes are going up.

whatabunch

Ever heard of civil disobedience? Not every violation of a stupid, money-grubbing, arbitrary rule is an ethical matter. I doubt scoff meant he was bogarting the handicapped spots.

that said, the rental car co's always charge it to my credit card.

beachbum

I remember discussions years back over concerns that our society and its member were transitioning from a hard code of ethics to one of situational ethics. Government made the transition long ago. Sounds like many of us have just about made it too. There is only right or wrong; there is no inbetween.

corie

Beachbum: of course there are in-betweens... What if you put in an hour worth of coins and came back in 20 minutes to find the meter expired and a ticket on your windshield?
What if you can back and found a ticket on your car for parking in a Mon-Friday loading zone...when it was a Saturday afternoon?
Both of these situations happened to me when I was in a rental car (different cities). The first time I tried to take care of it by phone with no luck. The second time I ignored it. All other tickets, I've paid.

corie

Oh, and neither time was I contacted by Alamo or charged by credit card. Despite that I still pay tickets I deserved!

Ticketed

Aside from the moral issues.

I received a parking ticket in Hawaii. We had rented from Hertz. I paid the ticket ($30) before we left Maui. My Mom had received a notice from Hertz with a $75 dollar charge to her Credit Card.

She had to dispute the charge with Hertz, but they eventually credited her back. I thought it was an interesting scam on Hertz's part to just charge now, let them prove it later.

me2

I also don't every pay parking tickets on rental cars. I've never noticed a charge on my credit card, but I haven't looked too close.

I currently live in Boston and park on the street. Parking police are simply tax collectors. The parking tickets pay for the buildings, payroll, and computers so that they can continue to issue tickets. For suburbanites who are responding to this message probably don't realize the predatory practices that cities use to ensnare drivers and confuse them to make them pay up.

kurt

I've always been charged by the rental company. I think eventually it will catch up to you in the form of,"If you want to rent another car from us sir, you'll hafta pay these 6 unpaid tickets" or worse yet, if you return to the city in which the ticket was issued back in 1987? and get caught speeding, you'll end up in the slammer overnight being Bubba's b!#ch.

jt

"ticketed": what scam? the only reason Hertz knew about the ticket is because they were charged for it. Your beef should be with the city (which doesn't even benefit from the tickets, but has to pass on your $ to state of HI).

Anyone gloating about not paying tickets should be aware it is your audience who is paying for it thru higher rental fees (and inability to use the parking spaces)!