Collection Notice For A Traffic Ticket

cbuhl79 · #1 11-09-2005, 01:28 AM

I moved to Florida from California a year ago.

I just got a collection notice saying that I failed to appear in court for a citation in California, and that a $300.00 civil assessment has been added.

The notice goes on to say that if I don't respond within 10 days, the assessment will become final and will be recorded as a judgement against me.

I got the ticket about 2 years ago, and as far as I can remember, I just mailed the payment in.

Do I need to worry about this since I don't live in California anymore? I'm mostly concerned about something going on my credit report.

Mr. Knowitall · #2 11-09-2005, 02:03 AM

You should dig through your old bank records - if you did pay the ticket, you may be able to resolve your present problem by submitting proof of payment.

You refer to this as a "collection notice" - is it coming from the court, or from a collection agency? One way or another, it is likely that the amount assessed will end up being reflected on your credit report, but if this is an action by the court there may be additional consequences such as the suspension of your driver's license.

cbuhl79 · #3 11-09-2005, 12:43 PM

The "collection notice" is coming from a Collection Agency.

I don't have a CA driver's license anymore (I have a FL license), so I'm not terribly concerned about my license being suspended.

I sent the payment in and forgot about it, but apparently they never got it. I'd hate to have to pay $453 for a $153 ticket.

If I can't prove that I sent the payment in, is there anything I can do to avoid paying the extra $300? If I don't pay this at all, or just pay the $153, will this definitely go on my Credit Report?

aaron · #4 11-09-2005, 03:11 PM

The odds are it is already on your credit report.

cbuhl79 · #5 11-09-2005, 04:41 PM

I finally got ahold of a clerk at the Court today. Here is what happened.

I sent in a payment by credit card before the due date. However, the credit card payment was not processed properly, and the Court sent me back a notice giving me a new due date (in May) to send in the payment.

Due to the fact that I had moved to Florida, I never received the notice. The civil assessment was added, and the account was sent to the collection agency last month.

The clerk said that I could either pay the total amount, or walk-in to Court to plead my case. Since I can't exactly walk-in to the Court in California, the clerk suggested that I send a letter to the Judge explaining my situation, and asking for the civil assessment to be dropped.

So hopefully I'll hear back from the Judge soon.

DaveBis · #6 11-15-2005, 04:52 AM

I wouldn't pay a cent of any of it......if it went on your credit report, who cares?! if it bothers you, send a PFD letter to the CA offering them $50 if they delete.

Otherwise, several year aged collection accounts only dropped my FICO scores around 5-7 points....BFD!

If you can prove you pay, then demand a validation from the collection agency, then demand within the same period demand proof from the credit reporting agencies........the collection agencies ofttne give up on this ticky tack stuff.

That is a crackup the court actually suggested you prove anything.....morons......