RICHARD SCHOLES writes:
This is a snippet of less than one week in the operation of our small company in Glen Marais.
We travelled for four days to Nina Park, north of Pretoria. This cost R128,30, excluding the manual toll costs we had to pay cash on the Highway from the exit of the e-toll charged section.
I drove my car to do calls for quotations and repairs, this cost R143,80. I always drive as best as possible on non e-toll roads.
I applied for e-toll tags, however, did not complete the online computer form correctly as I wanted to pay by EFT and the form did not allow for this.
It favoured a credit card type of payment which I was not happy to give to e-toll. So although I completed the application, fitted the sensors into both vehicles and these beeped each time we passed under the toll gantry, we were not given the reduced rate.
I phoned e-toll, asking where the nearest e-toll call centre was. I was told by the person, Irene in Pretoria. When I said this was not acceptable, she said Bruma.
I believed I was registered and according to the e-toll system I had a credit of R100 and only owed R0,10. So about two days later, when I went up the highway towards Pretoria, I stopped at the Engen filling station. I walked over to the e-toll building, but did not know it was actually a call centre.
Nowhere on the building does it say so. When I saw the queue I decided I could not wait and left.
The evening, on my way back from Pretoria, I stopped at the returning Engen Filling station and e-toll office. This time I actually got service which came at a huge cost.
They confirmed I owed the R270,10 for this short period as the e-toll system had not captured my application. They said the system for non e-toll members was marked up at 300% with a 60% discount if paid within a set period of time.
This system is called the VPC, standing for Violations Processing Centre. If you don’t have e-toll registration and use an e-toll road, you are then liable for this highly inflated cost. The signs on the highway make no mention of this.
On our return from our Christmas break I came back to several VPC accounts in the post. These I paid by EFT at the reduced rate indicated. I was told I paid the wrong rate and had paid too little. I asked why we had not received all the accounts that were due and was told by the woman behind the glass screen that Cosatu had ordered that the post office no longer delivered these.
So all persons that have not registered can expect a lot more 300% bills they are totally unaware of until receiving a summons from e-toll.
With hind sight, I should have registered at the beginning of the e-toll saga, but like so many others, first wanted to see what happened next. I
operate a small company with ten staff members. For the past four years, due to the poor economy, we have run at a loss. I keep the company running to give my workers a job.
What will happen this year with the additional costs forced upon us by Zuma and company? Each week our grocery bill is over R1,500
for a family of three and without buying any luxuries.
Where is South Africa going to? I will now have to pay in hundreds of Rands for the period we were not e-toll registered and for which I don’t have the money to do so.
