PORTSMOUTH, Va. – Elizabeth River Tunnels (ERT) is offering a limited-time fee reduction through November 1 for all E-ZPass customers who have received Pay by Plate invoices and notices for instances where their E-ZPass accounts had a negative balance.

Through November 1, E-ZPass customers who have invoices from ERT will pay only the E-ZPass rate, and those with Violation Notices and Final Notices will receive a 50% reduction in their administrative fees. Customers who have gone into collections are also eligible for fee reductions.

“On a daily average, we see anywhere from 4,000 – 5,000 trips made by E-ZPass customers whose accounts have a negative balance,” explained ERC CEO, Greg Woodsmall. “It’s important that E-ZPass customers understand they are responsible for the tolls and subsequent fees they incur while their transponder is unfunded. This offer allows us to help our customers who use E-ZPass start over with a clean slate and hopefully better educate them on how important it is to maintain their E-ZPass accounts in order to pay the lowest toll and avoid fees and penalties.”

E-ZPass is a form of toll payment administered by the Virginia Department of Transportation – ERT has no direct access to customer accounts.

ERT posts toll transactions to E-ZPass on a daily basis. If funds are available on the account, the toll is charged to the customer’s account. If there are no funds on the account, ERT continues to try to post to the account for 10 days to give the customer time to replenish the account and pay the E-ZPass rate.

If after 10 days the account is not replenished, the unpaid tolls are processed and invoiced by ERT at the higher Pay by Plate rate to include a processing fee. It is the customer’s responsibility to pay these invoices to ERT; ERT cannot charge E-ZPass accounts retroactively. Unpaid tolls invoiced by ERT will continue to escalate, and could potentially result in court proceedings or a DMV hold on vehicle registration.

To take advantage of this fee reduction offer, customers who have received invoices and notices from ERT must call 757-821-2659 or come to the ERT Customer Service Center, 700 Port Centre Parkway, Suite 2B, Portsmouth, VA between the hours of 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday – Saturday. E-ZPass customers who have received collections notices from Linebarger, Goggin, Blair and Sampson (LGBS) will need to call the number on the letter they’ve received to settle their account. Some customers may need to contact both LGBS and ERT Customer Service Center to resolve the amounts in collections and those currently in the Invoice or Notice phase.