Parking ticket system fine tuned
CITY HALL — City officials want to give back nearly $1 million to those who have mistakenly paid too much for parking tickets.
Beginning Oct. 1, more than 18,000 notices will be sent to motorists who overpaid citations issued during the last three years. Once confirmed, City Hall will send a check within 30 days, said City Manager Lamont Ewell.
City officials estimate that they’ll refund up to 400 tickets a month, totaling $20,000, which would represent approximately 2 percent of the total revenue collected from citations, Ewell said.
The refunds are part of City Hall’s new customer service initiative, “We Do the Right Thing Right,” and were identified by the Finance Department during a review of how money is collected by City Hall. Once identified, staff immediately devised a proactive refund program, whereas before, refunds were only given to those who made a request, Ewell said.
“Over the last three years, we estimated overpayments in the amount of $950,000,” Ewell said.“We need to give that money back. It’s the right thing to do.”
The refund initiative is not expected to increase operating costs, Ewell said.
In addition to the refunds, Ewell has been engaged in conversations with the company that manages parking ticket payments — ACS Inc. — to see if customer service can be improved. One of the main complaints that has been brought to City Hall’s attention is that ACS Inc. operates on an automated system and doesn’t allow for customers to talk to a person who can answer their questions.
There also is talk of extending the time period allowed for payment before a fine is issued. Ewell said City Hall already allows more time for drivers to pay fines than most cities — 35 days. The penalty for non-payment is typically double the original fine.
Overpayments are generally made by those who pay a parking ticket weeks after it is issued, city officials said. That delay causes a notice to be sent to a driver, who may send money again thinking his or her initial payment was not received. A spouse may do the same, thinking his or her significant other was forgetful.
In other cases, the Department of Motor vehicles collects citation payments at the time of vehicle registration, even after an individual has already made a late payment to City Hall. The DMV later remits those payments, city officials said.
City Hall collected $12.6 million in revenue from parking tickets last year, with $4.6 million going to pay for operating expenses. That left $8 million in actual revenue, a very small portion of the $256 million allocated to the general fund, which pays for essential city services such as public safety,city officials said.
“This is not a revenue source that we rely on,” Ewell said of the citations. “The best outcome for the city would be for people to abide by the law and have (parking) meters turned over for our businesses and their customers to help generate more sales tax revenue … Our preference is for people to obey the law.”
Sometimes driver’s don’t, even when they’re cited. It is estimated that City Hall loses $2 million annually because many fail or refuse to pay.
“It goes both ways,” Ewell said. Refunding all of the $950,000 sitting in City Hall’s coffers may be impossible given 80 percent of those who overpaid live outside of the city or were driving rental cars at the time. Ewell said every effort will be made to locate all who overpaid, but some may be difficult to find.
Money that is not refunded will remain in the general fund.
The top four cases in which people received citations are parking at a meter where time has expired; parking in a preferential parking zone without a permit; parking in a no parking zone, such as a fire lane; and blocking driveways and exits, city officials said.
Those who believe they may be eligible for a refund are asked to fill out a verification form online at www.smgov.net, or call (800) 214-1526.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 21, 2006. Read the original PDF.