Traffic Fine Confusion

[MusicalMan]

Hi Everyone
I received a fine in my postbox today. (R600)
The date of the offense 15 October 2021
Payment should have been made by the 3rd December 2021
I only received this letter yesterday, so what happens now?

I checked on PayCity and there is a summons number and a court date.
I haven't received a summons.
So, do I just make the payment and forget about it or do I really have to appear?


Thanks

 

[notayoba]

If there is a summons you better pay it. Next step is a contempt of court fee and a warrant of arrest.

Sounds a bit quick for a summons though? I ignore fines, and normally after about 3 years they either go away or I get a summons.

 

[Space]

pay the fine then they do not have a leg to stand on

 

[Quicks]

Someone told me once if the fine was not given to you by hand and they do not have proof you received it. Then just ignore the fine and do not pay it. Not sure if that's good advice or not, but try your luck and let us know.

 

[berrypi]

A summons must be issued to you or someone at your address. Keep checking payfine to see if the summons was delivered. If not... dont pay.

ALTERNATIVELY! you should have a stamp on the letter showing when it was processed for delivery... if after any of those dates, take a photo, and email traffic dept. They will either reissue or just cancel - this happened to me.

 

[MusicalMan]

Thanks all - Appreciated
I just paid it and hopefully that's the end of that

 

[Sideshow Bob]

Thanks all - Appreciated
I just paid it and hopefully that's the end of that

Good choice. Best is to settle when you notice. I don't think there will be anything on this further. They simply don't have the means to follow-up.

 

[NarrowBandFtw]

I received a fine in my postbox today. (R600

your first mistake is admitting that on a public forum, if you didn't sign for it you didn't receive it, ever, period!

The date of the offense 15 October 2021

see previous point, there was no offense, not as far as you are aware anyway

Payment should have been made by the 3rd December 2021

again, payment is not due, because you never received anything ...

I only received this letter yesterday

no you didn't!

so what happens now?

absolutely nothing would have happened, worst case a clerk of the court catches you at home and makes you sign a summons, which still gives you the opportunity to settle the fine at the original amount

best case, they're too lazy for that and it magically goes away (in some cases this could be an issue when the time to renew your license rolls round, but even that doesn't always happen)

I checked on PayCity and there is a summons number and a court date

never check on PayCity, who knows if they log that as proof that you are indeed aware of the fine ...

I haven't received a summons

precisely, a summons has to be delivered to you in person and you have to sign for it, anything less than that and there is no summons

So, do I just make the payment and forget about it or do I really have to appear?

no, yes and no

 

[NarrowBandFtw]

If there is a summons you better pay it. Next step is a contempt of court fee and a warrant of arrest

incorrect btw, the existence of a summons means nothing until it is delivered to you in person

 

[R13...]

Someone told me once if the fine was not given to you by hand and they do not have proof you received it. Then just ignore the fine and do not pay it. Not sure if that's good advice or not, but try your luck and let us know.

It's good advise. In MP, at their roadblocks they just print the ticket and hand it to you on the spot with a warning to get it paid or be arrested next time they stop you. Only for fines sent by postal service not ones you got handed in person, those you got to pay or be arrested.

In the cities, the metro thugs are likely to just arrest you regardless of whether you received the ticket or not. You can obviously call a lawyer as they don't usually send you to cells for traffic offences, they just keep you at the office until you can pay.

 

[notayoba]

incorrect btw, the existence of a summons means nothing until it is delivered to you in person

Correct or incorrect doesn't come in to play when you try to reason with a 30%er cop putting you in a holding cell at 1AM on Friday. Technicalities gets resolved on a Monday while you spend the weekend with Bubba.

I've personally had a warrant of arrest issued where there was no sign of a delivered Summons. Someone signed for it, just no one I know or ever heard of. First thing I heard about it was the warrant of arrest.

 

[NarrowBandFtw]

Correct or incorrect doesn't come in to play when you try to reason with a 30%er cop putting you in a holding cell at 1AM on Friday. Technicalities gets resolved on a Monday while you spend the weekend with Bubba.

I've personally had a warrant of arrest issued where there was no sign of a delivered Summons. Someone signed for it, just no one I know or ever heard of. First thing I heard about it was the warrant of arrest.

yeah that can definitely happen, the other part of one's fine avoidance training should be to avoid roadblocks like the plague, I've grown a 6th sense for knowing where they are over the years

long may that run of luck continue!

 

[DapperDanMan]

if after any of those dates, take a photo, and email traffic dept a number of dickpics

... and then forget about it.

 

[notayoba]

yeah that can definitely happen, the other part of one's fine avoidance training should be to avoid roadblocks like the plague, I've grown a 6th sense for knowing where they are over the years

long may that run of luck continue!

I have a policy of not paying any fines till I get a summons, and that summons almost never comes. I would say at least 90% of my fines disappear eventually. Pretty sure it's not cost effective to deliver a summons for any fines under about R1000.

I monitor most fines sites to see the status of my fines, but some one horse towns don't log their fines there. That's I how got warrant of arrest from Riversdale one day. No summons,no fine in the mail, no fckall, just a warrant and contempt of court fee. Luckily I found out before I hit a 1AM roadblock.

 

[The_Ogre]

incorrect btw, the existence of a summons means nothing until it is delivered to you in person

No, it can be served to anyone at your home or work address they have on record and a person older than 16 can sign for it.

The only summons that has to be served on you in person is a summons for divorce, since, well, it's kind of important to know that you are getting divorced.

 

[scudsucker]

a clerk of the court

A sheriff of the court, and they can get any adult on your property who knows you to sign for the summons.

In reality, it is way too expensive to have sheriffs of the court doing this, so they hire random people. You do not have to accept a summons from someone who is not identifiable as a sheriff, and they are required to have proof of ID.

 

[NarrowBandFtw]

No, it can be served to anyone at your home or work address they have on record and a person older than 16 can sign for it.

The only summons that has to be served on you in person is a summons for divorce, since, well, it's kind of important to know that you are getting divorced.

A sheriff of the court, and they can get any adult on your property who knows you to sign for the summons.

In reality, it is way too expensive to have sheriffs of the court doing this, so they hire random people. You do not have to accept a summons from someone who is not identifiable as a sheriff, and they are required to have proof of ID.

interesting, I have not had this happen myself, but know of at least one friend who's domestic signed the summons and he successfully defended against contempt of court by pointing out it wasn't him who signed

... of course he had to go to court to defend himself for contempt of court though so I suppose it's kinda the same as treating the summons as if it was received

PS: everyone in my household are under strict instructions to not sign any summons that isn't in their own names

 

[notayoba]

... of course he had to go to court to defend himself

That's how the bastards get you.

Do I.
A: Take a day off work, drive 3 hours to TownWithoutHorse, spend day waiting around court, pay for lunch and petrol, case gets postponed, drive back, repeat.

B: Pay R400 fine and R80 contempt of court fee and go have a beer.

 

[The_Ogre]

interesting, I have not had this happen myself, but know of at least one friend who's domestic signed the summons and he successfully defended against contempt of court by pointing out it wasn't him who signed

... of course he had to go to court to defend himself for contempt of court though so I suppose it's kinda the same as treating the summons as if it was received

PS: everyone in my household are under strict instructions to not sign any summons that isn't in their own names

The system is flawed in this regard.

Take my ex for example. The sheriff served a summons meant for me and she signed for it and, out of spite, never told me about it. This was for a case she opened against me (I wasn't allowed to drink or have alcohol in the house). Out of sheer luck I found the summons on the couch so got my lawyer to take things further.

I would have been locked up had I not found it.

 

[quovadis]

No, it can be served to anyone at your home or work address they have on record and a person older than 16 can sign for it.

The only summons that has to be served on you in person is a summons for divorce, since, well, it's kind of important to know that you are getting divorced.

Pretty sure you it's also still valid to do service by affixing or via registered mail for certain courts or even with high court approval newspaper adverts. We have a huge problem in SA with default judgments which usually end up being rescinded by any decent lawyer if it wasn't per procedure.