If you ever get a parking ticket or any kind of traffic ticket, it’s good to deal with it right away because if you don’t, it could come back to haunt you later.
The City of Toronto is digging through its vault, finding old parking tickets, and one Ontario driver is sharing his story after he discovered his licence was suspended over a 30-year-old parking ticket.
Geoff Clendenning, of Limehouse, Ont., near Georgetown, said he was surprised when he received a letter in the mail stating that his licence was suspended due to an unpaid parking ticket from 1996.
Clendenning first thought the letter was a scam, but it turned out, it wasn’t.
“I didn’t know what I was doing 30 years ago, let alone dealing with tickets,” he told CTV News.
He said the ticket was for $32.75.
‘I was shocked’
Clendenning said when he contacted Service Ontario, they had no record of the infraction.
He said he finally tracked the ticket down to a parking ticket in Toronto that had been partially paid. However, due to the outstanding balance, his licence was suspended.
Clendenning said he feels he should have got a warning first.
“I was shocked that I didn’t get in that first letter, like ‘Hey you’ve got this outstanding fee. You’ve got 15 days to resolve the issue otherwise we are going to suspend your licence,’” he said.
Clendenning paid the parking ticket but was shocked when he had to pay a driver’s licence reinstatement fee of $281 to get his licence back, something else he felt was unfair.
“That could be someone’s car payment, that could be their food or medication it could be all sorts of other things,” he said.
CTV News reached out to the Ontario Ministry of Transportation on Clendenning’s behalf and, in a statement shared with CTV News, a spokesperson said the following:
“Unpaid fines do not expire. If a ticket remains unpaid, the provincial court office has the ability to add administrative fees and refer the matter to the Ministry of Transportation for enforcement, which can lead to plate denial or a driver’s licence suspension.”
They added that in order to reinstate a suspended license, “individuals must pay the outstanding fine and penalties, as well as a reinstatement fee.”
CTV News also reached out to the City of Toronto.
“We understand the frustration this provincial process has caused. Provincial Offences Act fines are court-imposed, remaining in effect until they are paid in full,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
“In this instance, while the balance of the fine was paid, an additional payment was required to reinstate the license following its suspension in accordance with fees set by the Province.”
Toronto is actively going after unpaid parking tickets which could amount to tens of millions of dollars.
Clendenning feels there should have been a different process than having licences suspended.
“It certainly has an appearance of using a very powerful tool to remove someone’s licence to collect a very old outstanding fee,” he said.
The Ministry of Transportation also advised drivers with suspended licences to visit the Ontario Government website to learn more on how to get your licence back after its been suspended.
It is important to note that it can take a week or two to get your licence reinstated and if you drive without a licence, you can face additional fines and penalties, which can also void your car insurance.
