<p>So the latest statement from EZ-Pass shows one of our tags being read in Chicago in July. I called to say we haven’t been in Chicago, and was told that the device “had to have been there” since it read on the scanner. </p>
<p>Will dispute the claim, even though only $3.50, because I don’t know how it happened. Has anyone else had problems with misreads? Thinking I might need to request a new device :(.</p>
<p>We have never received an easy pass payment list. Maybe my husband signed up to get it online. Seriously…we never get a statement even when we use it!</p>
<p>Is there another tag read such that the Chicago read would be impossible?</p>
<p>Hmm… I just had one in NY State last week. The pass was there but just didn’t read. The EZ pass people told me just to wait and see if I get a letter before doing anything.</p>
<p>Now you all have me checking my account. We get monthly statements via email.</p>
<p>ETA: It all looks fine–local tollroads and bridges only.</p>
<p>I had an EZ-Pass in a rental and they “read” a toll on a freeway I’d not traveled on. It took 3 days, but I got a phone call back saying “sorry.”</p>
<p>This kind of stuff happens all the time.</p>
<p>Think about how this stuff works - you go through a toll, data gets read from a remote device, data is transferred over a network to get written to a database, etc. There are lots of chances for a bit to be misread or flipped and the wrong data processed.</p>
<p>There is one round trip I make fairly regularly on the Mass Pike. Every once in a while one end or the other doesn’t record properly, and the toll doesn’t show up on the bill.</p>
<p>The problem of getting charged double tolls or tolls for a higher weight class or other mischarges is frequent enough that it has made the evening news. The Turnpike Authority’s response is basically “oh well, we are not responsible for errors, check your bill for errors every month”. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>Once, my son’s EZpass somehow got flagged as “stolen” for one toll, and they sent me a ticket for $50. I had to print out the record showing that we actually got billed on the date and tollbooth in question and send it in in order to avoid the fine.</p>
<p>The ultimate indignity is that to challenge it you have to pay a “processing fee” which the state (or somebody) keeps, whether you win the appeal or not.</p>
<p>I have Maryland EZpass tags even though I live in MA, because at the time MD gave out tags for free and AM was charging $30. Maybe that’s why I have trouble.</p>
<p>You’re being a little generous on hardware. All non-trivial software has bugs.</p>
<p>I don’t use EZ-Pass. I just pay cash.</p>
<p>BTW, several years ago, NH was giving out free EZ-Pass boxes. I think that there were people in MA that managed to scarf some of them up.</p>
<p>H was charged for driving the entire length of the NY Thruway, even though he had only driven part of it. They refused to issue a refund. He cancelled EZ-Pass.</p>
<p>BCEagle- Is the reason you don’t use EasyPass that it can misread and bill incorrectly? As I zoom through the gate and watch people sitting in the long toll line, I always wonder why everyone doesn’t use it. In the NY/NJ/PA area, EasyPass is essential IMHO.</p>
<p>In Maine, at least, you get a discount for using EZ-pass. We also avoid long lines during peak travel times. We get quarterly statements and have never discovered any errors.</p>
<p>We get discounts and shorter lines with EZ pass. What’s not to love? I check my bills because I take off work related expenses. Haven’t found any mistakes in all the many years we’ve had it.</p>
<p>I still have my EZ pass from NJ even though there is nowhere to use it here in NC. Whenever we drive up north I try to remember to bring it along. I haven’t checked my bill in 5 years… maybe I should take a look. Problem is I don’t get them in the mail, only online and I forgot my pw.</p>
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<p>I like my privacy.</p>
<p>I have a 20 minute commute with practically no traffic. I don’t see how EZ-Pass would help me. (I don’t commute on a toll road). I use toll roads maybe ten or fifteen times a year.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/21/2199.asp[/url]”>http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/21/2199.asp</a></p>
<p>Chichester, New Hampshire police arrested an innocent school teacher on January 20 claiming that he had not paid a 75 cent toll. Eric Kingkopf, 57, uses an E-ZPass transponder to navigate the state’s toll roads. Last year, the device fell onto the floor of his car and failed to record a single 75 cent transaction. When Kingkopf received a notice about it in the mail, he paid the outstanding charge with his credit card and considered the matter settled. Affiliated Computer Services (ACS), the company that runs the toll system, did not record the payment.</p>
<p>This put Kingkopf on a list of criminals. As he explained to WMUR television, a police officer ordered him out of the car, put him in handcuffs and took him to be booked for driving on a suspended license. Police also impounded Kingkopf’s car.</p>
<p>We did a good bit of driving this summer for D’s college tours (1100 miles X 2 trips = 2200 miles). The eastbound trip involved a lot of tolls getting over Manhattan, down the NJ turnpike, on the PA turnpike, etc. Very convenient to have the pass, particularly on the NYC bridges/tunnels. </p>
<p>Just weird that it would read in Chicago. Customer Service didn’t explain how they thought it would have read if I was never there. Basically just said I was lying, I guess. </p>
<p>Have penned a letter to dispute the charge - will be looking forward to their explanation - or lack of one, lol.</p>
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These days they are probably photographing your car whenever you go through a toll, whether you have an EZpass or not.</p>
<p>In Maryland, if you go through a toll without an EZpass, they send you a bill for the toll in the mail. You don’t really even need one (although they do tack on a fee of some sort).</p>
<p>I prefer info about me in the least convenient way possible. A picture is better than a transponder. I don’t even know if we can afford pictures with our budget.</p>
<p>With the image processing and OCR technology available these days, a digital picture is just as good as a transponder. In fact in some states you are only allowed to use your EZpass with a specific car, so they OCR every plate that goes through and look it up to make sure it matches the transponder.</p>
<p>The police have systems now that automatically scan, OCR, and check for problems every single car they drive past, parked or moving. They can scan thousands of cars per hour.</p>
<p>I do read slash dot.</p>
<p>I live in the live free or die state and we do take our privacy seriously.</p>
<p>Speaking of privacy, not only can these gizmos track where you drive, they can also track how fast.</p>
<p>There was an incident where I live of a policeman arrested for speeding on the turnpike. He was going well over 100 mph and he refused to stop for the state trooper who was trying to pull him over. When he did finally stop, he was arrested. He wasn’t speeding to a crime scene, he was just on his way to his shift in the next town. </p>
<p>The local newspaper decided to investigate this particular speeding cop and was able to use SunPass data to determine how fast and how often he drove over the speed limit. The widened the investigation and found over 800 instances of speeding policemen. This chart [Cop</a> Speeds](<a href=“http://databases.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/ftlaudCopSpeeds/ftlaudCopSpeeds_list.php]Cop”>http://databases.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/ftlaudCopSpeeds/ftlaudCopSpeeds_list.php) shows the scope of the problem.</p>