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What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket

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  • 11-01-2016, 04:21 PM
    Brampton2016
    What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Hello everyone. I'm in South Carolina and I recently received a letter from a collections agency about potential unpaid parking tickets to a university (in South Carolina) I attended years ago. Since it was so long ago, I dont remember if I had any unpaid parking tickets, so I sent a letter back to the collections agency asking for proof. Knowing me, in college, I thought to myself that I probably did have parking tickets that were unpaid, and after receiving "proof" from the collections agency, I was about ready to pay up.

    After looking at the proof sent by the collections agency, it listed basic information such as a description of the fee (parking citation) and the balance, which is $89. After that, it has my name, the date it was printed, the mailing address of the university and last but not least, the term date for which the citation was issued which was in May of 2014. By 2014, I was 3 years removed from this university. On top of that, according to the university website and its parking services, it states that students will not be able to graduate or request transcripts until any fees, such as parking citations, have been paid. Since I graduated, I've requested transcripts twice and received them. Also, I walked for my graduation and received my diploma with no issue.

    Is graduation and receiving transcripts "proof" that these parking tickets either aren't mine or are erroneous?

    Also, should I just send them proof of when I attended the university which conflicts with the term date listed on the "proof" they sent me? I went from accepting the fact that this is a delinquent debt I didn't pay to now feeling like the collections agency is trying to get one over on me. Thoughts? Thanks in advance everyone.
  • 11-01-2016, 05:38 PM
    Mr. Knowitall
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Even if the campus has a rule that it will not issue transcripts or allow graduation until all parking fines are paid, if you graduated in 2011 and the ticket was supposedly issued in 2014, that would serve only to suggest that the ticket could not have prevented graduation because it was received long after you graduated.

    If you have not been back to campus since you graduated, see if you can get information about the ticket directly from the campus agency that issues and enforces parking violations.
  • 11-01-2016, 06:38 PM
    Brampton2016
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Quote:

    Quoting Mr. Knowitall
    View Post
    Even if the campus has a rule that it will not issue transcripts or allow graduation until all parking fines are paid, if you graduated in 2011 and the ticket was supposedly issued in 2014, that would serve only to suggest that the ticket could not have prevented graduation because it was received long after you graduated.

    If you have not been back to campus since you graduated, see if you can get information about the ticket directly from the campus agency that issues and enforces parking violations.

    Mr. Knowitall, thanks for your response. You make a good point, but let me clarify by saying that even in 2014, the car I was driving was not in my name. So even if I had received a citation in 2014, the citation would have gone to the owner of the vehicle at the time- not me. Also, what I failed to mention above, was that the total of the citation that the collections agency sent me had a deduction amount of remaining funds on my University card. So this leads me to believe that this has to do with my time as a student, even though the date is off by 3 years. I hope this makes sense.
  • 11-04-2016, 03:48 PM
    Who'sThatGuy
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Quote:

    Quoting Brampton2016
    View Post
    Mr. Knowitall, thanks for your response. You make a good point, but let me clarify by saying that even in 2014, the car I was driving was not in my name. So even if I had received a citation in 2014, the citation would have gone to the owner of the vehicle at the time- not me. Also, what I failed to mention above, was that the total of the citation that the collections agency sent me had a deduction amount of remaining funds on my University card. So this leads me to believe that this has to do with my time as a student, even though the date is off by 3 years. I hope this makes sense.

    So get proof that the vehicle in question did not belong to you on and after the date the ticket was issued. You must have surrendered the license plates to DMV?
  • 11-04-2016, 10:57 PM
    Brampton2016
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Quote:

    Quoting Who'sThatGuy
    View Post
    So get proof that the vehicle in question did not belong to you on and after the date the ticket was issued. You must have surrendered the license plates to DMV?

    I could do this, but the document/proof the collections agency sent me didn't even list a vehicle. It had no specifics as far as where it was issued, no license plate, even the date says Term Date: 201405. So that's not even a specific date. I'm just wondering what to do in response now. Should I e-mail them back asking for more proof? Or should I Just simply e-mail them back saying that they have erroneous information?
  • 11-05-2016, 10:58 AM
    Who'sThatGuy
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Quote:

    Quoting Brampton2016
    View Post
    I could do this, but the document/proof the collections agency sent me didn't even list a vehicle. It had no specifics as far as where it was issued, no license plate, even the date says Term Date: 201405. So that's not even a specific date. I'm just wondering what to do in response now. Should I e-mail them back asking for more proof? Or should I Just simply e-mail them back saying that they have erroneous information?

    You ask for proof of the fine. They will need to supply you with the ticket.
  • 11-05-2016, 11:19 AM
    Mr. Knowitall
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    If you want a copy of the original ticket, contact the college that issued the ticket. You can ask, but as validation can be accomplished without their obtaining the original ticket, it is not the case that a collection agency must provide a copy.
  • 11-06-2016, 01:18 AM
    Brampton2016
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Interesting. Whats the next step for me, then? Can I just tell them that the date is wrong on the document they provided and that I wasn't a student then? I could send them official information, such as transcripts and diploma, to show the years I attended and graduated; or is it not recommended I show any sort of documentation?

    A side note, my credit rating just hit 802 from 782. I did a free credit check and there's nothing on my credit score. How serious can this inquiry be by the collections agency if they haven't even reported it to the credit rating agency? Afterall, it's an $89 ticket.

    Thanks
  • 11-06-2016, 10:21 AM
    Bluesie58
    Re: What Constitutes Proof That You Paid a College Parking Ticket
    Quote:

    Quoting Brampton2016
    View Post
    Interesting. Whats the next step for me, then? Can I just tell them that the date is wrong on the document they provided and that I wasn't a student then? I could send them official information, such as transcripts and diploma, to show the years I attended and graduated; or is it not recommended I show any sort of documentation?

    A side note, my credit rating just hit 802 from 782. I did a free credit check and there's nothing on my credit score. How serious can this inquiry be by the collections agency if they haven't even reported it to the credit rating agency? Afterall, it's an $89 ticket.

    Thanks

    The collection agency validated the debt. The "proof" gave you enough information to know that the debt was not incurred by you (unless you visited the university in May, 2014). If you know for a fact that the debt isn't yours, contact the university to get the issue resolved. Then, if you choose, you can send a cease and desist letter to the collection agency.
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