UPDATE: 14-01-24Some interesting information sourced from a Portuguese Car Rental Company. See also the Forum threads on MoneySavingExpert..................................................................................."About responsibility of toll's payment.Regarding some doubts and questions that our customers have asked us regarding the payment requests they are receiving for the use of tolls, we inform you of the following:PAYMENT OF TOLLSSince the first moment that legislation began on the introduction of tolls through electronic devices in toll roads, and aware of the seriousness of such a measure for car rental companies (rent-a-car), following the various legislation's changes, it was established that the person responsible for paying tolls is the lessee (who actually has possession of the vehicle at the time of circulation) and not the rental companies, which are limited to renting the vehicles and do not have control over them during the rental period.After lessee (driver) identification, the process is suspended and new proceedings are initiated against the person identified as the offender (Renter/driver).The rental company's responsibility for paying the toll fee and the respective fine ends at the exact moment at the driver is identified.After this, Via Livre should notify the lessee(driver) for tolls' payment (no penalties) - 10 of Law no. 25/2006, of 30 June, which was republished by Law no. 51/2015 of June 8th. After being notified, the driver of the vehicle may, if he wishes, present his defense/contest, and it is recommended to be done with a lawyer support.If the renter/driver demonstrates that he is not responsible for the payment, he must present his defense, under penalty of not doing so, which may give rise to coercive collection by the toll road management companies.The statute of limitations for these offenses is five years.This procedure is also enshrined in paragraphs 2 to 7 of article 171 of the Highway Code (Lei das Autoestradas Portuguesas).All the legislation of tolls' payment, associated to rental cars, is already duly addressed in article 10 of Law no. 25/2006, of 30 June, which was republished by Law no. 51/2015 of June 8th.If you don't agree with the administrations fees charged by EPC, if you're not notified for tolls' charges or if you have any evidences that you were not here in the date of the tolls in the letter, we recommend you to use EPC form to contest the charges they are requesting."...............................................................................From www. justanswer .co .uk/ law/ nauoo-received-penalty-charge-notice-epc-plc. html..............................................................................."Please note the following:- Epc Plc is a UK-based company that collects unpaid tolls and fines from drivers who have used roads, bridges, tunnels and other infrastructures in various European countries.- Epc Plc is a member of the British Parking Association (BPA) and has access to the DVLA database to obtain the details of vehicle owners.- Epc Plc has been accused of sending penalty notices to drivers who have already paid their tolls or fines, or who have never used the infrastructures they claim.- Epc Plc has also been criticised for charging excessive administrative fees and interest on top of the original tolls or fines.- Epc Plc has no legal authority to enforce the payment of penalty notices in the UK, unless they obtain a court order from the country where the alleged offence took place- Epc Plc has a low success rate in obtaining such court orders, as they often lack sufficient evidence or face legal challenges from the driversBased on this information, it seems that you have received a penalty notice from Epc Plc that is either fraudulent or erroneous. You have several options to deal with this situation:You can contact Epc Plc and dispute the penalty notice. You can provide them with any evidence that you have paid the tolls or fines, such as receipts, bank statements or credit card bills. You can also ask them to provide you with more details about the alleged offence, such as date, time, place and direction of travel. You can also challenge their administrative fees and interest charges, as they may be unreasonable or unlawful. You can also ask them to prove that they obtain a court order from the country where the alleged offence took place.You can also contact the car hire company or the toll management authorities in Portugal to verify if you owe any charges or if there was a system error in 2018"
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