Melmoth, KwaZulu-Natal - A Cape Town motorist who has been served with several traffic fine notices from two KwaZulu-Natal local municipalities, as well as e-toll accounts from Gauteng, is convinced somebody is using his car registration illegally.
Ashraf Adam, 50, said he got his registration number in March 2014 when he bought a new car. In the next three months, he received three traffic fine notices from Mthonjaneni Local Municipality in the Melmoth area, one from Umlalazi Local Municipality in Eshowe, and several e-toll accounts.
Adam said that on receipt of the third notice from Mthonjaneni he was summoned to court.
“I had to drive from Cape Town to Melmoth to defend myself.”
The traffic fines ranged between R200 and R300 and the e-tolls between R300 and R400.
“When all the amounts are added up, it is a huge sum.”
Adam said he had paid R4000 for the four-digit registration and “shortly after that, I started getting traffic fines”.
The car in the picture printed on the notices was not his. It was a silver Volkswagen Golf - like his - but a different model.
“Somebody inside the system is tipping off somebody else.”
The frustrated motorist said: It’s way too much of a coincidence for another silver Golf to have the same registration as mine.”
Adam said he failed to get an answer from the authorities. He contacted the Road Traffic Management Corporation but his e-mail bounced back with a message: “The inbox of this e-mail is full.”
“I tried calling the number but nobody answered,” he said.
He had written to the Mthonjaneni authorities, who insisted that he go to court.
Since June, his affidavit to the Gauteng Department of Transport had received no reply.
Adam said he was considering getting a new registration.
KwaZulu-Natal transport spokeswoman Zinhle Mngomezulu said the national database showed Adam as the sole owner of the registration number.
“This means that there’s no duplicate. However, it might be that someone is using his plate. I will inform all the officers to be on the look-out for this registration.”
The Mercury