Moving Truck Tickets & Tolls — Who is Responsible?

May 23, 2013

We all make mistakes, it’s inevitable — we’re human and it’s part of every day life. But, what happens when the mistake is a parking ticket or unpaid toll for a moving truck? Well, that’s where it can get a little bit tricky. Some movers may think that it’s up to the owner of the moving van to foot the bill, while others may think it’s the responsibility of the driver.

Moving Truck tickets- who's responsible?

Angela Willingham, Manager of Equipment Recovery for U-Haul International.

To get the most accurate information, we checked with Angela Willingham, Manager of Equipment Recovery at U-Haul International, on who is responsible for any moving and non-moving violations given to a moving truck.

Moving Insider: Who is ultimately responsible for moving and parking violations in a rented moving truck?

Angela Willingham: The person listed on the rental contract.

MI: Does the contract a renter signs disclaim this?

Angela Willingham: The information, including the notice that administrative fees may be charged, is in the Rental Contract Addendum Document Holder

MI: What is the process if the renter gets a ticket and why can it take so long?

Angela Willingham: If the jurisdiction requires that we pay it and bill the customer ourselves because we own the unit, then we pay and put a charge through the system. If the customer has a credit card, we attempt to charge it. If there is no credit card, a receivable in the amount owed is set up and the customer is sent an e-mail and/or text message advising them of the charge and giving them 7 days to pay it at a reduced administrative fee. If it is not paid, it is given to the collection agency to pursue payment.

It could take a while for us to be notified by the jurisdiction because they do not know who the registered owner of the vehicle is and it is often an out of state plate. It is our goal to have every toll violation or citation processed within 2 weeks of receipt.

U-Haul Moving Truck Tickets Example

An example of tolls charged to a U-Haul moving truck. Take note that it can take up to a year before states notify the vehicle owner in a one-time group letter, rather than individual letters for each ticket.

MI: Customers have said, “I rented the truck over a year ago — why am I just getting the ticket now?”

Angela Willingham: The people that send the violations to us, whether they are private parking lot operators or city or state level governments, don’t always send tickets one by one. We get them usually as a bunched grouping, so we have to go back and check the records and bill each customer accordingly. Sometimes tickets can come in that are over a year old — that’s out of our control. Once we receive the ticket in our offices, it goes out to the customer within 2 weeks.

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