Michelle Wilkinson-Beards and Mick Reilly are fed up with receiving fines for overdue tolls despite never having travelled on those roads.
Not only do they live in a different city to where these toll roads are but they also own a scooter; not a car.
Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) has issued about half a dozen fines to the couple for overdue tolls since 2018.
Whenever they raise the issue and prove that the plate is registered to their scooter, the toll notice is quickly dropped and they receive an apology.
Wilkinson-Beards calls it “an unnecessary inconvenience” as it keeps happening.
THREE-YEAR HEADACHE
The first letter came on November 12, 2018; with the most recent one coming on Sunday.
The toll notices usually range from $11 to $14.
Although, the tolls are around only $3, RMS adds an additional administration fee of $10
Hence, the couple always follows up on the mistaken fine.
“If you don’t pay it, they increase exponentially.” Wilkinson-Beards said.
In all, they have allegedly skipped the tolls in November 2018, March 2019, April 2019, December 2019, and September 2021.
All of which occurred across Sydney’s Bradfield Highway, Quakers Hill Parkway, and the Cahill Expressway.
Wilkinson-Beards now even keeps a template response ready, to send off to the RMS for when she does receive the penalty notice.
The most recent letter reads:
“Dear Sir/Madam,
We received a toll notice for one of our scooters – registration OFH54 that suggests that we have travelled around Quakers Hill Pwy – Sunnyholt Rd.
However, we reside in Port Stephens and have certainly not travelled near that area, can you please check the image to verify the type of vehicle and advise at your earliest convenience.”
After which they receive an apology for the mix-up from a responding officer.
This has happened to three of their five scooters.
The couple runs a backpacking accommodation where they rent out their scooters to visiting tourists.
Their scooters, with plates OFH50, OFH52, and OFH55, have all copped the toll notice.
They even suspected that some of their customers had travelled to Sydney in the scooters.
However, the scooters were in the workshop at the time and could not have left the Port Stephens area.
