Money Moral Dilemma: Should we pay for driving fines that weren't our fault?

SusanNew

Something similar happened to me when I was sharing the driving in France with a friend, with a crowd of friends in the car. We kept telling him to slow down, and he didn't. He got flashed by cameras three times, which we hadn't fully realised at the time, and I got the letters as I had used my credit card to hire the car. The hire company had just charged them to my credit card. I went to see him and told him he owed me the money, which he had to pay up. It didn't affect our relationship as he knew he was in the wrong.
Definitely don't pay half of his fine. Make him take full responsibility for his terrible driving.

eDicky

The driver of course pays any penalties resulting from their driving/parking style (unless agreed otherwise beforehand) - no dilemma whatsoever.

pollypenny

It is a dilemma. This person seems to have done all the driving - quite handy for the rest of the party. Italy is notorious for speeding anyway, so he was unlucky to be caught.

If you want to remain friends make a contribution.

[Deleted User]

IslandLife wrote: »

How many times did you warn them not to speed and park in unsuitable places?
If you were very vocal about it, then don't pay.

I think there will probably be some fall out from this, but *shrug*, serves them right for driving dangerously.

As a rule of thumb, I don't agree to drive anyone for the duration of a trip, regardless of cost. I've done it once, and it's such a pain in the !!!, everyone else gets to relax. Whilst I'm freaking out about which turn to take, and the weirdness of the rental car.

Unless the passengers were actively encouraging them to go faster and to park in a disabled zone then it doesn't matter how many times they warned them or even if they said nothing. The driver must be a capable adult human since they were driving in the first place, it seems to me nowadays that people just don't like to take responsibility for their own actions.

[Deleted User]

pollypenny wrote: »

It is a dilemma. This person seems to have done all the driving - quite handy for the rest of the party. Italy is notorious for speeding anyway, so he was unlucky to be caught.

If you want to remain friends make a contribution.

They didn't 'seem to have done all the driving', they did do it all as they were the only named driver. Do you think the driver was bullied into driving? They could have always have said 'no'.

Do you mean they were bullied by other drivers into speeding too? Poor, poor victim.

Was parking in the disabled zone their decision or were they bullied again?

Pluribus1945

No, I wouldn't pay anything, he was the driver so it was his responsibility to stay within the law

happyinflorida

The question doesn't give enough information, as usual.

On the rental agreement for the car, whose name/s are on that?

Is it yours or is it the driver who was the problem and got the fines?

If it is yours, you could end up in big trouble - the fines could multiply big time and they might take you to court and jail you for non payment and you could be extradited - who knows what Italian laws are like, I don't for sure, but I'd err on the side of caution and not dismiss this out of hand, just in case.

If the worst comes to the worst, you could pay up and then make the person responsible pay - send them a letter advising due to your name being on the rental agreement you will pay but hold them responsible for their irresponsible driving and despite being warned about the parking in the wrong place, they stayed and refused to move the car - you'll pay but only on the understanding that they repay you within 14 days or you'll take the matter to court for reimbursement.


Good luck and don't ever let this person drive you around again!

GaryJeffery

Short answer is emphatically NO do not pay someone else's fines. If you are the Driver you are the liable person. Hire companies will get the money back wherever they can, so if they have your card details then they will charge that card, if you signed the agreement then there is nothing you can do about that, bar getting recompense from the driver.
If you are going to drive in another country, there is no excuse for not researching the rules and signs, either before you go, or at the very least before you drive there. If you know what you are looking at, it will not be confusing.
There is a wealth of online help for this.
Best advice would be to not get into that situation in the first place

KoolFork

It's very easy to make mistakes if you are not familiar with the area. This can happen within the UK where the signage is in English. Councils are very hot on bus lane fines for example.

Parking in a disabled space is always wrong and a different matter.

And calling the Italians corrupt is objectionable.

NoodleDoodleMan

I would not be following the above advice (post #20) without being 100% sure it is accurate.

For example, I don't think closing a credit card account absolves you from having to pay any charges which are applied in these circumstances.

Not paying police fines is a potential scenario for more problems.