Misuse of Identity issue.

Revolver Ireland

Hi All,
I received a letter from Hertz/Firefly back in August regarding a speeding fine they alleged I got in France (Bordeux). The problem is, I haven't been to France in 16 years, I've never been to Bordeux, I have never rented a car with Firefly bar a cancelled car hire for Malaga the previous year.
Obviously, I contacted Hertz straight away to tell them. They were quite frustrating in the matter, passing me about like a rag doll.
Now, it wasn't my credit card used, so no money was been taken from me, but I got a fine notice then from French authorities. So I told Hertz again, also telling them if they don't sort this out, this fine in my name will accumulate. I also said it could result eventually in a summons and judgement.
Eventually in October, I got a notice saying it was going to be resolved and no further action was needed by me.
Unfortunately yesterday I received a fine from French Authorities via registered post for 375e. I contacted Hertz again, and again got fobbed off. Now I have wasted so much time with this, including phone calls, emails, calls to France etc etc. I went to my Local Garda station to lodge a misuse of identity complaint yesterday.
However, I am so frustrated and angry with Hertz at this stage for their utter lack of respect and the fact that their incompetence in dealing with this matter has resulted in wasting so much of my time and not dealing with the issue.
It seems unfair to me that they can do this with me having no recourse. I want to know if I can claim compensation for all of this, or if not compensation, is there a route I can pursue to at least have them penalised for this? I am a reasonable guy, all I wanted was a resolution to a situation not of my making. I have engaged and informed them every step of the way since last August. I've been extremely patient, and still, they wont even put me onto a supervisor. I've been nothing but polite too. While at times firm, I've never lost my rag or said anything regretful etc. At this point, I am just so angry about it. I thought it was just going to be a case of 'Sorry about that sir, I'll sort that out.' Yet here we are 7 months down the line, and they can't even have the decency to have a supervisor speak to me. At this stage, I want more than just a resolution. I want them to pay in some way.
TIA.

Artifacting

It might be worth contacting the Data Protection Commissioner and also setting the ball in motion to request all data held in your name on file with Hertz to see where this came from.

The European Consumer Centre in Dublin might be able to help you with the French side too. They're on 01 879 7620
They will help communicate with their French counterparts so that the issue could be pursued in France.

Just be careful about the fine as it's still active. I would suggest you get in touch with the French police as you could end up in a situation where you're summonsed to court in France.

I would also suggest that when you speak to the car hire helpline, you mention GDPR and how you want to file a formal complaint. Don't accept being fobbed off.

Mr. Incognito

I would write to Hertz and tell them you are bringing a case for Defamation and Damages.

I expect that might sort it our fairly quickly

Artifacting

Given that it's actually gone legal in France, I would suggest getting some advice from a solicitor here to ensure that it's wrapped up properly.

Otherwise, if there's a fine outstanding against you and it goes to court and you don't show up, you could find that you're arrested when you next enter France as they will have it on a database and believe me, they do follow up on these things, particularly if someone hasn't shown up in court.

So, I would suggest clearing it up as a matter of urgency as inaccurate information has been given to the French police by this rental agency.

Also €375 Euro would indicate that it's a fairly heavy fine. The normal penalty in France for speeding is €95.

The other aspect is that this issue may not go away if someone's using your identity they may use it again. That's why I'd follow up urgently.

Definitely get onto the European Consumer Centre as they might be able to get some reaction from the company in France and definitely go the GDPR route as it's a data breech.

Passing false information to the police in France would also be a criminal matter for whoever did so. So, I would suspect the police would take it fairly seriously when flagged up with them.

Credit Checker Moose

http://english.controleradar.org/speeding-fines.php

The fine is 135 euros, however if paid in less than 15 days it is 90 euros, and if paid in more than 45 days it is 375 euros. The maximum possible being 750 euros (if it goes into trial).

The reason it is 375 is because it hasn't been paid after 45 days.

UrbanVixen

Would there be any value in contacting the French Embassy in Dublin to see if they can advise or help ?

Like others, I would be concerned that this penalty is still legally active with possible adverse consequences until it is formally and officially withdrawn by the French authorities.

Artifacting

I know of one situation where a friend of mine had an outstanding fine in the Netherlands and when they flew I to Schiphol they were arrested and ended up having to go to court over it.

Definitely ensure that it's quashed in France. Otherwise it will just end up with your name, address and DOB and a possible bench warrant sitting on both French and Schengen databases and you'll be faced with major issues should the French courts catch up with you again.

You could try contacting the French Embassy. Personally, I would find a French speaker and start by contacting the police agency that issued it and explain the situation and your concerns and see what they say.

The priority would be to get the car hire company to admit their error and then get that communicated to the police.

Could you provide any evidence that you were not in France? Work references etc ? I mean you could feasibly have been in the Schengen area and just wandered into France and hired a car. The fact that there's no record of you entering a French airport wouldn't necessarily prove anything. So be prepared to prove you definitely were not in France at the time that this occured.

To be perfectly honest, it's serious enough to need a solicitor. It's beyond a minor administration issue if someone has actually used your ID.

You'd need to find out what documentation was given to the car hire company and whether the fine was issued to the company - caught on a speed camera of if someone actually handed a fake driving licence with your details to the French police.

My advice would be:

1 Call the European Consumer Centre in Dublin and ask for help. They'll contact the French consumer protection agencies for you.

2. You need to be very firm with the car hire company and drive home the fact you're prepared to take legal action against them and are going to seek legal advice. Don't just take a customer care fob off. Be very firm and speak to their Irish branch.

Revolver Ireland

Appreciate the responses. I got a call today from Hertz (Only took 7 months) who were extremely apologetic and have informed me that they have contacted ANTAI in France and taken ownership of the fine. They have emailed me this apology etc too at my request as I told them I wanted a paper trail. He also said he was following up on how my details got mixed up in all of this. It really does appear to be an admin error of some sort, or maybe an internal job. With this in mind, would you still advise pursuing a legal route too? Would The European Consumer Centre call the ANTAI (French authority who are directing the fines) for me to make sure what Hertz are saying is true and confirm my name is in the clear?
Thanks again guys.

Artifacting

I wouldn't be able to say exactly how far the European Consumer Centre might be able to go, but I would suggest giving them a call.

Also, you are entitled to a copy of any data that the car rental company has on file under GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) on a pan-EU basis. So, feel free to take that up with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner in Ireland or CNIL (Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertés) in France.

CNIL has *big* teeth compared to or DPC.

Revolver Ireland

If I may have a bit of a rant
I'm not somebody who likes compo culture. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, and I also realise that mistakes happen. I'm fairly forgiving about most things. I was not p1ssed off at the start, I was more 'Obviously a mistake, better let them know to get it sorted'. However, they've treated me like I'm just a disgruntled customer or something. Automatic responses everywhere along the way, 'Wait ten days, wait ten days'. 'No you cant talk to a supervisor, you'll hear in 10 days'. Not one callback in 7 months until today. I have had to compose emails, make phonecalls, scan documents, go to the police station, ring French numbers etc etc. It really is an imposition, and an absolute p1ss take at this stage. Like I said, I'm all for being understanding that mistakes happen etc, but this is beyond a joke. I've never been their customer, yet here I am having to deal with this 7 months on. I really feel like they need some kind of punishment at this point. Ridiculous carry on. /rant