Speeding fine from france, in hire car. Not driving...
Speeding fine from france, in hire car. Not driving...
Author
Discussion

Stoatman

Original Poster:

592 posts

197 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
A little advice please.

Business trip to France , hire car in my name but I didn't drive as we had two people added to the car. However all paperwork in my name...

Fast forward two weeks , I have a speeding ticket as said colleague obviously got a bit enthusiastic. Main issue is, I cannot understand any of the forms that came through the door except the payment option which can be done online.

Thoughts :

Pay it as if I was speeding ... Do you get points on your license ??

Try and decipher the form and fill in to get fine in colleagues name ??

Ignore and hope it goes away ...

Any experience here ??

Lagerlout

1,812 posts

266 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Google translate app on your phone. You can take pictures of forms and it'll translate them.

J12KJR

2,860 posts

273 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Stoatman said:
A little advice please.

Business trip to France , hire car in my name but I didn't drive as we had two people added to the car. However all paperwork in my name...

Fast forward two weeks , I have a speeding ticket as said colleague obviously got a bit enthusiastic. Main issue is, I cannot understand any of the forms that came through the door except the payment option which can be done online.

Thoughts :

Pay it as if I was speeding ... Do you get points on your license ??

Try and decipher the form and fill in to get fine in colleagues name ??

Ignore and hope it goes away ...

Any experience here ??
There isn't an agreement with France so it would be pay the fine only and no points.

You could use google translate to decipher the paperwork and see if you can name the driver although wouldn't know the legalities of you letting an in-named person drive the hire car, might not have been insured and they might be able to come after you for that.

Ignore it initially and see if anything else comes through on the matter.

ETA Lagerlout types faster than me.

Marcellus

7,204 posts

249 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Pay the fine and get the cash from your colleague, it'll make non difference to you.

Cold

16,724 posts

120 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
I thought EU rules meant you were entitled to a copy of the charges in your own language?

Stoatman

Original Poster:

592 posts

197 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
I think im leaning to payment as were banged to rights. Thought we were shifting at times.

I have no problem with paying really . As its 45 euros. Just want to try and understand 100% the points situation

V40Vinnie

863 posts

149 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Arent fines deducted from your credit card automatically with hire cars (assuming you used a Credit Card to hire it)?

Stoatman

Original Poster:

592 posts

197 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Doesn't seem to be separate invoices. Suspiciously came on the same day. Wonder if fine went to hire car place first or something

daveenty

2,385 posts

240 months

Friday 25th November 2016
quotequote all
Hire company usually charge an "admin fee" for forwarding your details to the authorities. Fine is independent of this and payable to said authorities.

No points, and 45€ is a bargain to be honest. smile

Pan Pan Pan

10,725 posts

141 months

Saturday 26th November 2016
quotequote all
I would love to find out if UK authorities are as diligent in going after and collecting fines, or unpaid toll fees from foreign motorists, using UK roads.
If they are any where like collecting fees from health tourists using the NHS the answer might seem to be no.

heebeegeetee

30,169 posts

278 months

Saturday 26th November 2016
quotequote all
Pan Pan Pan said:
I would love to find out if UK authorities are as diligent in going after and collecting fines, or unpaid toll fees from foreign motorists, using UK roads.
If they are any where like collecting fees from health tourists using the NHS the answer might seem to be no.
Does this help? http://www.kentonline.co.uk/dover/news/revealed-hu...

anonymous-user

84 months

Saturday 26th November 2016
quotequote all
Fine and no points.

I live in Germany and have been caught 3 times, I should have two German points as one offence was 36km over and another 22km over.

They don't bother with the points as I have a foreign license but do enforce any instant bans, such as running a red light.

As we / my colleagues also work a lot in France the rules are the same, it's only the past few years they have started to fine across borders (in private cars).

TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

156 months

Saturday 26th November 2016
quotequote all
If it's a hire car, it certainly won't go away. The hire firm will pay it and just charge it to whoever's card paid for the car. And, yes, you did agree to them doing that.

Jellytot02

1 posts

114 months

Monday 3rd April 2017
quotequote all
I received a speeding fine in February this year from Direction General des Finances Publiques, for apparently speeding when driving a hire car out of Marseilles in early September last year apparently doing more than 50 km/h but less than 20 km/h over this limit! and received an increased fine all in French (my son translated it using google I think) of 180 euros as I hadn't responded to the first letter (which I hadn't received). Didn't immediately open it as I thought it was from a company I deal with regularly and as such didn't need urgent attention.
When I did open it I had gone past the time for a 20% reduction to 144 euros.
I am due to go back to France in the next couple of days in my own car and am not sure what I should do. It seems unfair to have to pay this increased amount when it has taken 5 months for this 'Amende Forfaiture Majoree' to arrive and I had no prior notice of the intention to fine me for speeding.

I go to France about 4 -5 times a year, usually in my car but sometimes fly and hire a car but not from the local car hire company I used in this case as my visit to Marseilles was a one of.

Does anyone have any advice please or experience of this? It does not appear that I have been charged by the hire company as yet. I could appeal it but that would be difficult given the language difficulties but 180 euros is enough for me to think twice about just paying.


mikeveal

5,132 posts

280 months

Tuesday 4th April 2017
quotequote all
I suppose you could try saying that you'll consider paying the bill in two years time, subject to our garlic munching brethren not attempting to use Alderney, Sark, Jersey or Guernsey as bargaining chips.
Or is that sort of talk likely to start a war?