An expensive mistake in Austria - Our autobahn vignette had expired!!

[BigTim]

We got back from our 5 week trip to Slovenia/croatia last weekend. We had a super time but made an expensive mistake on the way home.

On the way down Cary bought an Austrian 10 day autobahn toll vignette at the Austrian border. I bought a Slovenian monthly toll vignette just before the Slovenian border.

On the way home when we crossed from Croatia to Slovenia I was driving and Cary popped out and checked that the Slovenian vignette on our windscreen was still valid and confirmed it was valid for a month. At the Austrian border she again checked and again said that the Austrian vignette was valid for a month so we drove on into Austria.

As left the toll booth for the Bosruck tunnel we were stopped by a official in a florescent jacke who asked, in English, to see my vehicle registration document and driving licence which I cheerily provided. He then asked if we had a valid vignette and I pointed to the one on our windscreen. He rechecked and to my horror said that that one had expired.

Having warned us that we could be fined up to €1000 he then fined us €120!!! He gave me a receipt which he explained would cover us for 2 days in lieu of a vignette. I was too stunned to argue and having paid cash and received the receipt drove on.

An expensive mistake as the 10 day vignette we had failed to buy woudl have cost c€8.00!!!!

It is so annoying I had researched the charges before we left and had them recorded in notebook. A senior moment perhaps!! It meant VERY steep toll charges for Austria and we were only in the blessed country for less than a day before we passed on into Germany.

But you have been warned make sure your Austrian vignette is up to date!!!

Tim

 

[GrahamF.]

Yes, the Austrian's are very smart and on the ball with their vignettes. This year we toured Austria and Bavaria and purchased a vignette. We were re-entering Bavaria just south of Salzburg on a Saturday afternoon, and on the Autoroute exit road were Police checking validity of vignette......... luckily mine had one day to run!

 

[John_374564913]

I have done the trip through Germany and Austria many times and I think you will find that the reason you have to slow down at the toll even with the vignette is because it is automatically checked by camara.

John

 

[DianneT]

Yes Asfinag are very hot on their Vingettes we were stopped after just coming off an Autobahn near Vienna but we were still valid.
We have often bought a vingette for a day so as to be legal. It is a very good organization and all the money taken on these tolls are ploughed back into the roads and nothing else thats why their roads are so good. Wish we could have the same system here.

 

[emmitdb]

Greetings,
I must have been galling to have to pay the fine especially as you didn't intend to escape payment.
On a similar theme, there have been numerous suggestions on OUR Government's website for savings and spending cuts for a similar system to be introduced at the ports for our Continental cousins (including, but not exclusively, lorries, temporary residents using foreign registered cars and tourists) to use our road system.
The suggestions, in whatever gise, have received very strong support and, as a result I can see it being introduced