Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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SALT LAKE CITY — Have you heard the tip about overpaying a traffic ticket?
Chances are you've come across some sort of variation of this story at some point. First, they were chain emails, then MySpace chains, and later, Facebook posts.
As the lore goes, if you overpay a traffic ticket even by the slightest amount, you get reimbursed for the extra money. Therefore you’ve paid off the ticket, and the government is happy, but if you don’t cash the reimbursement check, the transaction doesn’t go through the computer system and you don’t get docked points on your license and driving record. Thus, your insurance company doesn't hike up your rates.
My editor asked me to look into it after her friends had mentioned this trick. I have to say, it caught me off guard because:
1. I didn’t think it was that slow of a news day.
2. I don’t drive, and thus was immediately the worst candidate for this job.
Then, as a curious reporter does, I went through court records to see if this was my editor’s attempt to find out if she could avoid alerting her insurance company of yet another speeding ticket. Nothing there.
Then I went online to check it out. Is it true? Not even in the least bit.
As it turns out, this is lore that’s about as old as any other online fake news, spreading through the aforementioned virtual social forums. In fact, myth-busting website Snopes.com states that this "tip" dates back to as early as 1998 — and was tweaked slightly to seem credible in each country it was spread to.
“As to why people want to believe in the proposed stratagem, the scheme described makes sense, and in its original form, it even provided a source,” the outlet wrote.
A similar website, truthorfiction.com, also debunked the myth. A spokesman for the National Motorist’s Association told the site they haven’t found a place where that would work.
Edmunds, the automotive information company, also calls it a hoax.
“As soon as you're found guilty of speeding, the points will automatically appear on your license, whether or not you make the payment,” the group wrote.
Many of you were probably already aware this was fake and, if you weren't, I hate to be the one to burst your bubble. The point is, it’s always good to investigate those threads or memes before you spread the information to others.
