If we talk about strange stories about fines… We assure you this is the weirdest we have ever known. Apparently, a driver in California accumulated 15 traffic tickets. Up to here nothing seems strange, right?
And what if we told you that out of those 15 tickets… she was not driving at any of the times? Apparently, some fantasy-type plates sold online were so real that the traffic cameras confused the numbers… And they ended up reaching someone who was not guilty.
They are VANITY plates (or copies of them, of course) sold online, her vehicle was not in any photo but she kept receiving tickets from all over the country! Imagine what chaos.
The fake plates in California
This is the story of Suzi Kiefer, a California resident, who began receiving since May a wave of fines on her car: speeding, running red lights and even toll evasion… but she did not remember wanting to star in a Bonnie and Clyde scene, none of these infractions corresponded to her Dodge Magnum, which also has a unique color. The common denominator was the plate: all the fines showed a car with the inscription “LUVSICK,” identical to hers.
Tired of receiving tickets she decided to investigate why this was happening to her and investigate, and discovered that the blame was on some decorative plates sold by Zumiez and Broken Promises Co., whose design was so similar to a real California license plate that it fooled the control cameras! Although the tickets were eventually canceled, Kiefer had to spend hours calling each traffic office to prove her innocence…
A problem that goes beyond an isolated case
The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) clarified that the sale of products that imitate official plates is prohibited, although the state law does not give them powers to directly remove these items from online stores… After the scandal, the companies removed the “LUVSICK” plate from their catalogs, but they still offer other variants with messages like “HELLBND” and “OMWB2U.”
The Ghost Cars
And indeed, this already happened in New York, well, something similar, in this case it is vehicles that circulate with plates covered, altered or directly fake, to avoid fines when they commit violations. It does not make the job difficult for the authorities and it loads the penalties on people who no longer have any relation with those cars, please, people!!
How to dispute erroneous fines
This case has made many users wonder how to dispute fines that do not correspond to you, and some experts have explained that disputing a traffic ticket by mistake is possible if you act quickly and above all, if you have evidence, this is the most important thing! Check the plate number carefully, prove the ownership of the vehicle or you can even request a hearing, these are key steps so that the sanction is canceled before accumulating surcharges!
The thin line between decoration and fraud
Of course this has generated much debate although it has remained as an anecdote: to what extent should these “decorative” plates be allowed? Although they are sold as simple accessories, their similarity to official ones generates confusion in automatic traffic surveillance systems, opening the door to fraud and to unfair situations like this one.
Technology increasingly controls traffic and this type of legal loophole becomes traps for innocent drivers, there are already more than 80 cases across the State with similar problems! Should there be a limit to online sales of this type? Or will it be our new normal from now on? Think that you can get fines without even having taken your car out of the garage!