Beware Italian Road Fines
by Wendy Perrin
< p>[#image: /photos/53db1af66dec627b14a193d1]||||||< br>< em>Planning to drive in Italy this year? It can be pricier than you've banked on.< br>Photo: William Abranowicz, < em>Conde Nast Traveler< p>Since a slew of < em>Perrin Post readers seem to be heading off to Italy this spring and summer, I figure I should share a warning that's come in from a reliable source who spends much of her life there and knows it like the palm of her hand. < ahref="/travel-tips/rentals/2006/06/Wendy-Perrin-s-Worldwide-Villa-Rental-Guide">Italian villa specialist Mara Solomon of < ahref="http://www.homebaseabroad.com/">Homebase Abroad writes:< blockquote>< p>"The Italian government has installed sensors and cameras on highways to clock road speed, capturing license plates so that they can remotely charge fines for speeding. Every time you trip the counter, you get a fine. You can get as many as six tickets between < ahref="http://www.concierge.com/destination/tuscany">Tuscany and Naples. There are two stretches of the A1 in particular to watch out for: theChianti stretch north of Chiusi toward < ahref="http://www.concierge.com/destination/florence">Florence and the stretch betweenNaples and the < ahref="http://www.concierge.com/destination/amalficoast">Amalfi Coast. (The up side: The fines have slowed down drivers and reduced highway deaths in Italy.) < blockquote>< p>We've heard from three parties who traveled with Homebase Abroad last year and, several months later, were hit with charges on their credit-card statements that they did not recognize. The charges make their way onto the renter's credit-card bill via the car rental agency and appear to come in two parts: First, a paperwork processing fee of some 30 euros. Then a fine of 97 euros. These fines show up between one week and six months after a trip. The Italian government is also cracking down on the fines within historic districts; these begin at 83 euros per infraction."< p>Good to know. Thank you, Mara, for sharing this information with us.