E-ZPass Billing Woes Focus Of Customer Assistance Plan

MARYLAND — After more than 27,000 E-ZPass customers signed an online petition calling for an investigation into billing errors, the Maryland Transportation Authority Board on Thursday approved a customer assistance plan that waives civil penalties for several months for unpaid tolls.

The plan also calls for temporarily halting the referral of toll bills to the Central Collection Unit and Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration.

The plan takes effect immediately, according to the MDTA, with the grace period ending at 11:59 p.m. on Nov. 30, 2022.

The department said it will resume referrals of unpaid toll bills and civil penalties to the collection unit and MVA on Dec. 1.

The move comes several weeks after Maryland EZ-Pass users signed a Change.org petition requesting Gov. Larry Hogan to call an investigation into the billing system.

"Bills from 2020 arriving over one year later, late fees of $25 being billed without having received any notices, stacks of bills being sent with threats of withholding vehicle registrations and tax refunds, transponders not working, and the list is endless," a portion of the petition reads.

SEE ALSO:

• Fed Up E-ZPass Users Launch Petition To Resolve Billing Issues

According to MDTA, the waiver grace period and the move to temporarily cease collections for unpaid toll bills come after Hogan asked officials to help customers facing late fees on toll bills that accrued during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The deferral of toll bills during the pandemic protected Marylanders from hardship during one of the greatest health and economic emergencies of our lifetimes, but we realize paying off those bills now can be a challenge for many families,” said Maryland Transportation Secretary James F. Ports Jr., who serves as MDTA board chairman, in a news release.

“The customer assistance plan approved today by the MDTA Board responds to Governor Hogan’s request — as well as our customers’ requests — to explore relief options. The plan gives Marylanders plenty of time, more than nine months, to pay toll bills without having to worry about additional penalties or other consequences," he said.

This plan does not affect the posting of backlogged tolls, the MDTA said. It will continue posting COVID-backlogged tolls into summer 2022.

For customers who choose not to pay their video tolls before the due date on the notice, mailings of citations/civil penalties will continue during the grace period and will remain in effect if unpaid tolls are not paid within the grace period.