An Australian driver has had his licence suspended and was fined a huge fine even though he has not driven in the state where the offences occurred for five years and appears to be a different gender to the offending driver.
New South Wales resident Ross told Ben Fordham on Wednesday that his licence has been suspended and he has been fined $7,000 for 14 traffic offences in Victoria.
“I haven’t been to Victoria in the last five years and I haven’t driven a car in Victoria in the last five years,” Ross said.
He said the traffic offences occurred in two cars registered to two Victorian companies.
A photo included with one of the citations sent to Ross shows a long-haired woman driving the car.
Fordham asked Ross if he had long, flowing hair and Ross replied, “No, unfortunately. I have it short.”
Ross said he continues to face obstacles trying to clear his name.
He said he has tried to emphasize that he is a man and that the driver in the photo appears to be a woman.
A photo included with one of the tickets sent to Ross shows what appears to be a long-haired woman driving the car.
‘Ben, it’s a very complicated process and I think that’s what I wanted to highlight to your listeners.
When someone fraudulently assumes your identity, it is not easy to recover it.
He said he has been dealing with several government departments and is still being given the runaround.
‘I spoke to Revenue NSW, Roads NSW, Vic Roads, Vic Fines, Vic Police, NSW Police, Service NSW… and I’m now back to Vic Fines.’
“It’s incredible!” Fordham replied.
‘It’s not you!’
Fordham said he would take on the case on Ross’s behalf, saying, “Give me 24 hours.”
We’ll talk tomorrow at this time, he said.
The New South Wales driver said he had his licence suspended and fined $7,000 for 14 traffic offences in Victoria, despite not having driven in the state for five years.
In May, a Victorian pensioner was hit with more than $20,000 in fines after claiming a group of people falsely nominated him for driving penalties.
Kelvin Bellette lost his wallet on a bus on the Mornington Peninsula in 2021 and, after reporting it to police, got it back without his driver’s licence.
Since then, the disabled pensioner and part-time pizza delivery man has received 60 traffic fines in the area, only four of which are his, he says.
Traffic violations include speeding, driving without a seat belt, and driving unregistered vehicles in a toll zone.
A very confused Mr Bellette entered into a payment plan to reduce the massive debt, and only discovered what appears to have happened with the help of his lawyer.
Under Victorian legislation, knowingly providing false or misleading information in a nomination statement is a criminal offence.
Fines of $9,000 and possible loss of license apply in each case for an individual, while a company can be fined $18,000 in each case.
