Should I pay my parking ticket?

[Passacaglia]

Maybe some of you guys have some insight on this...

I got a parking ticket a while ago -- there was street cleaning, and I missed the sign warning me about it the day before, and ended up noticing that the street cleaning was going on maybe five minutes after getting the ticket. Anyway, I was looking at it recently, and noticed that the license plate number was entered incorrectly. Does this mean that I don't have to pay the ticket, or will it come around to get me in the end, if I don't?

[Eaglesfan27]

I've gone before a judge and gotten such a ticket cancelled before due to misidentification of my car. You should be able to get this kicked on a similar technicality. However, I've learned from my friend's misfortune that ignoring parking tickets can eventually be costly.

[Esquared1]

I believe I might know something about Chicago.

I knew a cop when I was in Grad school. I asked her about my ticket, and she asked "Did they get your licence number down correctly"?

I would infer that you could call in and say "They must have made an error, since this is not my licence number,", and you could get out of it.

[Passacaglia]

Those are good points, but they involve calling in. I mean, if they don't have my license number written correctly, do they even know who I am?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Either pay it or fight it, just don't ignore it.

[JeeberD]

Originally posted by JonInMiddleGA
Either pay it or fight it, just don't ignore it.

Very good advice. Trsut me, you don't want to have to spend the afternoon in jail over a damn parking ticket.

Most likely you can get it thrown out. A friend was telling me the other day how she got a ticket thrown out becuase they misspelled her first name (Lindsey instead of the proper Lindsay) and I remember my dad getting out of a speeding ticket when I was a kid because they listed his car as a two door when in fact it was a four door...

[Godzilla Blitz]

Originally posted by Passacaglia
Those are good points, but they involve calling in. I mean, if they don't have my license number written correctly, do they even know who I am?

I got two snow emergency parking tickets once when I left my car parked on a street during an out-of-town vacation. One of the tickets had the wrong license plate number entered on the ticket. I ignored the incorrect one, paid the other one. Nothing ever happened regarding the incorrectly entered one.

Unless this varies by state, I would think the way they identify you is via the license plate number. Sure, they could probably check all the variations, or perform some kind of computer search using car make, color, etc., but I would think it wouldn't be cost effective.

I would vote for ingoring the thing, unless you feel morally obligated to pay.

[Chappy]

I had my car break down a few years back and got a couple tickets in a row on back to back days. I decided the smart thing to do was take my license plate off and it worked like a charm the next day. Unfortunately the day after they towed it away. I still miss that car.......

[Passacaglia]

Ha ha, that is hilarious, Chappy!

My guess is that they won't be able to identify it by looking for variations of the license plate, since it's an out of state plate, and they got two numbers wrong.

I have no moral obligation to not paying the ticket. It just seems weird for me to TELL them what the license plate is, if they don't even know it.

[Shepp]

If I were you I would contact the court that the ticket is issued from and see what they say. Without looking at the ticket I can't say for sure, but maybe the issuing officer put someone elses ticket on your car and your ticket one someone elses car. If that is the case they may still know who you are. I don't know how IL traffic law works but in Georgia if you get a parking ticket and don't pay it we turn it over to a collection agancy and wreck your credit.

If IL works anything like Georgia you can probably contest the ticket in court and explain to the judge that you were issued a ticket that doesn't even match your car and it will probably get thrown out. Just depends on wether the fine is high enough for you to take the time to go to court.

[Vikings13]

Always fight the man

[Samdari]

If you ignore it, you can claim to never have gotten the ticket. Since they have your plate number wrong they cannot prove otherwise.

Going in front of the judge to say "they got my license plate wrong" also requires going in front of the judge and saying, "I was parked illegally during a street cleaning on such and such a day and such and such a time, but the stupid cop wrote my plate number wrong."

Burn it. Play dumb.

[McSweeny]

Originally posted by Eaglesfan27
. However, I've learned from my friend's misfortune that ignoring parking tickets can eventually be costly.

tell me about that. I had several parking tickets that i didn't pay in a timely manner when i was living in Boston. So one day i go out to my car and.... i got the boot. Thank you very much BDT!

I was very tempted to try and take the damn thing off myself... but ended up having to pay all my tickets+late fees+boot fees=major monies

[Eaglesfan27]

Yep, that is what happened to my friend as well. With the late fees and boot fees, he ended up paying over a thousand dollars at once when he really couldn't afford it.

[mikejb]

if you haven't gotten anything in the mail a few days after the ticket was issued, they oviously can't trace you to the ticket. unless your city has a reciprocating deal with the offended city, forget it. never pay out of state PARKING tickets, just be careful when you go back into that town.

[QuikSand]

Interesting - lots of very strong-minded answers to questions other than what was asked.

I could start by suggesting that it's your civic duty topay the ticket, or to contst it if if was not properly levied. But that's not what you're interested in hearing.

What you are interested in hearing is, to borrow from Marathon Man, "is it safe?"

Yes, it is. You're in the clear.

[hukarez]

Originally posted by McSweeny
I was very tempted to try and take the damn thing off myself... but ended up having to pay all my tickets+late fees+boot fees=major monies

Sounds like a 'Simpsons' episode...

[STK]

Originally posted by McSweeny

I was very tempted to try and take the damn thing off myself... but ended up having to pay all my tickets+late fees+boot fees=major monies

<a href=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3112670.stm>Or call this dude...</a>

[yabanci]

In California they take down the vehicle ID too, so even if they wrote the license plate number wrong they still have you with the vehicle ID. I would have thought they did this everywhere, otherwise you could just put a fake plate on the car when you park and never have to worrry.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

This is one is easy. If all you got was the ticket on your car, just treat it as if it blew away or fell off and never received it. If you receive something in the mail, then go pay it. Otherwise, they haven't been able to trace you to mail it and your in the clear.

Doubly so because you are out of state.