SALT LAKE CITY — It's always a sinking feeling to find a ticket slipped under the windshield, but are these citations always legitimate?
That's the question one Utah resident posed when his girlfriend received a flyer on her windshield stating she would receive a "ticket by mail" when parked near the University of Utah.
But several glaring inconsistencies were contained in the notice.
It stated the fine for failure to pay is $40 if paid within two weeks, then increases to $80. But the fine would presumably be for parking illegally, which was stated nowhere on the "ticket."
Fines increase if not paid in a timely fashion, but the infraction would be clearly stated on the ticket, along with the code citation and identifying information from the issuing officer.
But the most obvious indication that this is from someone running a scam is the instruction to provide cash.
Included on the "ticket" are instructions to "drop this note in the mail slot of the front door around the front of the building to the east of the parking lot."
It included the helpful information that the mail slot is "just around to the front of the building you are parked behind, the front door is under the porch and faces the 7-11. You must include a $10 cash payment with this note."
To be clear, no legitimate parking ticket will ever ask for cash, and certainly never through a mail slot, in a door beneath a porch, facing a 7-11.
Notify the Salt Lake City Police to clarify any questions regarding a "ticket" and to report fraudulent activity.
