Pilis Nemzeti Park Fella

Why were we fined £137 over a £4.20 toll pass in Hungary?

Euro Parking Collection are chasing us for failing to buy an electronic e-vignette

In August my wife and I took a motorcycle tour of Europe which passed off uneventfully until last month when we received two letters demanding £137 from a firm called Euro Parking Collection. They claim to be on behalf of the Nemzeti Útdíjfizetési Szolgáltató Zrt, the motorway organisation in Hungary, and were for being on motorways without buying an e-vignette. We did use the motorways on the dates mentioned, and would have happily bought the e-vignette, as we did in Switzerland. There were no toll booths or signs in English and so we missed this. The demand of £137 seems excessive, given that I now know that it would cost about £4.20 for 10 days. Do I need to pay this or can I ignore it? RB, Solihull

We asked Euro Parking Collection on what basis it was levying this charge. Had a court in Hungary issued court proceedings and there was a judgment against you for non payment? That fact there was no reply suggests these claims are being sent in the hope that some people will pay up for a quiet life.

Vignettes are required for all motorway users. In Hungary physical toll stickers were replaced with electronic e-vignettes registered online. Motorway use is verified by roadside cameras based on licence plates, and drivers without a valid vignette incur the cash fines.

The parking ticket expert and founder of the AppealNow website, Barrie Segal, says demanding payment before any appeal is heard is probably a breach of article 6 of the Human Rights Act. In your shoes, if you’re not planning to go back to Hungary, we would bin it. You may want to pay £4.20 – what is due to the Hungarian authorities, and ignore the rest. Others heading to Hungary note these vignettes are required.

Jack_Russells4ever

I have been wondering why could the Hungarian authorities not just offer license plates that already include a reasonable fee included to use ALL the roads and motorways in Hungary? Buying vignettes and trying to keep up with them is a major pain. Or collect more in fuel taxes for the use of the roads? You cannot use a vehicle on the motorway without fuel and by collecting a little more on the fuel would charge drivers a little more that drive more and less for less use. For that matter, it is the lorries that probably do most of the damage to pavements, why not collect more fuel tax or charge more to plate a larger vehicle. Just thinking out loud. I know there is a better method to pay for using the roads than the vignette system. In many nations roads are paid for by the fuel taxes and cost to plate a vehicle annually. Soory for bringing this up but it is related.

Thairetired2016

Hungary is not unique in having the vignette. Try Austria. There Asfinag (operator) stops you and you pay a fine on the spot or you leave your car with them until you got the money.
Toll fees violation of human rights? Serious?

wolfi

Yes, Hungary like Austria is very strict on the use of the vignette!
If they catch you/photograph you without it - you have to pay or?
A bit OT:
A relative of mine who visited us and Budapest (to get from Austria just to the Balaton you don't need the Autobahn in Hungary ) paid but still got a letter demanding payment.
He cleared it up with the help of the German automobile club:
He's from Tübingen which is often written as Tuebingen when no "Umlauts" are available. So on the handheld terminal he entered his licence plate number as TUExxxxxxx - which was wrong!
They found out that Ü, Ö etc are ignored even though they are a part of Hungarian - he should have entered TUxxxx.
Luckily he was acquitted ...

Sachina

A few years ago some friends of mine were stopped by the German police and had to pay an on the spot fine of 60 Euro for not having a vignette whilst travelling on the Autobahn.

I sometimes drive to Kosice Barca Airport to collect my family. The toll road starts at the Hungary/Slovakia border and unless you know exactly where it's located you can easily miss the "wooden shed" which is the only place you can purchase a vignette, which costs 10 Euro.

There is nowhere else to buy one until you get to the next petrol station which is on the outskirts of Kosice and I wonder how many drivers have been fined simply because the "wooden shed" isn't clearly marked!

Peter_in_Hungary

Its not the toll fee that is the violation of human rights but the method of demanding payment.

Jack_Russells4ever

I know, I am just suggesting that if they truly want a unified easier method to pay for using the roads there is an easier way and at the end of the day people wouldn't get trapped and fined for using a road or motorway. I never said anything about human rights. I have driven in North America and there are no extra fees to use the interstate highways in most states except for a few that were stupidly privatized. When you approach them they are well marked and there are exits clearly marked if you don't want to pay. Really, if they want a unified Europe like they are trying to give us the use of all roadways should be available at no extra cost with the purchase of fuel. If you drive less you pay less. What do they use the revenues from taxing fuel now?

scot47

Along come the Brits, telling the Magyars how to run their country ! Cleraly the fundamental Human Rights of Homo Britannicus have been flarantly violated here ! And by Johnny Foreugner at that !

wolfi

The idea of a common system of Autobahn payment has been discussed often - but there are just too many variations:
Sometimes you pay per km, sometimes per day/month etc -and in Switzerland you pay for the whole year, even if you're using the Autobahn just for one day!

PS:
This also has been discussed in Germany which up to now has no vignette system for cars - but it'sonly a question of time ...
We have a saying in German:
The government only wants your best - and that's your money ...

scrubbedexpat142

Outrageous isn't it!

Pilis Nemzeti Park Fella

I guess most of us (on this board) know about the need for vignettes in Hungary & Austria. But did you know about the need for the emissions sticker when driving in certain parts of France? https://www.certificat-air.gouv.fr/en/

I got concerned about this because the obvious free motorway route to Budapest after Eurotunnel runs Brussels - Germany - Austria- Hungary - and to get to Brussels quickest you drive through Lille, where the emissions sticker *is* required. You can get round it with a slightly different route but as it's so cheap you might as well buy the sticker in advance and go direct
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ne...ible-100-fine/

Thairetired2016

Are you serious?

Thairetired2016

If you don't want to pay toll, don't use the toll road. There is always an alternative. May take you longer, road may be potholed, but it will be free to use.

Pilis Nemzeti Park Fella

I must admit I got fined 2000 Austrian schillings back in 1998 when they caught me out for no vignette, no ANPR in those days so it was just the motorway cops with binoculars. Very painful. The fact that I had a badly broken arm in 3 places & was heading for Vienna General to get it set did not help (girlfriend was driving). ISTR about £80-100.

wolfi

Re:
emission stickers

You also need them in Germany - old stinky Diesels aren't allowed in most towns ...
(Only new stinky Diesels
There were three levels: red, yellow gree - now green is necessary.