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Internet, phone make
By Treena Shapiro
paying traffic fines easier
Star-BulletinPaying traffic fines is so easy you don't have to leave the house, let alone enter a courthouse, thanks to new Internet and telephone payment systems launched yesterday by the state Judiciary.
People can now pay parking, moving and miscellaneous citations up to 30 days after they are issued or up to 24 hours before the court date. Parking tickets paid 15 days after issuance will require payment at the higher amount listed on the citation. Users can still opt to pay fines through the mail or in person at courthouses.
Even visitors cited on Oahu can take advantage of the new system and pay their fines when they get home instead of letting tickets mar their vacations.
There is a fee for the service, generally ranging from $1.50 to $5.50 depending on the fine.
"It'd be great," said Jerry Giordano of Mililani, at the cashier's office at Honolulu District Court on Alakea Street yesterday. "Better than standing in line here."
But Giordano couldn't have paid for his speeding ticket from home because he had to come to court to show proof of insurance.
Similarly, Moanalua resident Alan Chavez had to come to the courthouse to contest a charge of driving under the influence. He said, however, he thought the new system would be good, "especially for those who get in trouble consistently."
Ticket payments can be made 24 hours a day through the Judiciary's Web site at www.state.hi.us/jud or by calling an interactive telephone voice-response system at 800-423-3841.
Both services require a Visa, Mastercard or JCB credit card, the citation number and the vehicle license plate number. A touch-tone phone is required for the phone payment option. The Internet service provides users with a printable receipt and the phone service gives callers a receipt number.
The state's general Web site: http://www.state.hi.us
