City of CH to refund parking ticket overpayments

The city of Cleveland Heights is taking action to refund an overcharge of $5 for various parking violations issued between 2013 and the present. The refunds are for tickets issued for specific, non-metered parking violations and include these infractions: prohibited zone, no permit, overnight parking, fire hydrant and fire lane parking, abandoned vehicle, traffic hazard, parking on sidewalk and parking on curb or streetlawn. The city recently learned of a clerical error resulting in the issuance of paper tickets for some parking infractions with the additional fee.

“All efforts will be made to refund the extra $5, with interest, charged for applicable parking violations,” said City Manager Tanisha Briley.

In December 2012, fines were increased for a number of the city’s parking violations. These increases took effect in Jan. 2013. The Cleveland Heights Police Department ordered new tickets to reflect the increased fines at this time, and during this transition the clerical error occurred that resulted in erroneous increases being added to the paper parking tickets for various infractions.

Anyone who received a parking violation since January 2013 for the above-noted violations was instructed to pay a $20 fine versus the actual violation fee of $15. The police officers writing the tickets were not aware that there was a discrepancy; after learning of the error, the city took action immediately.

Any individuals who received and paid a parking ticket for these specific categories from January 2013 up to the current time is eligible for a refund of $5 plus interest from the city. The city will be sending a postcard notification to all those affected, with instructions for reimbursement. Information will also be available on the city’s website, www.clevelandheights.com/parkingticketrefund. Additionally, an e-mail (parkingticketrefund@clvhts.com) and avoicemail account (216-291-3012) have been set up for anyone who thinks he or she may be eligible.

“We regret this error occurred and will make every effort to make it right for our residents and visitors,” said Briley. “We will act quickly to make restitution to individuals who may have been impacted by this clerical error.”