Ohio Turnpike to apply $5 late fee to unpaid tolls, warns against text scams

CLEVELAND (WJW) – There are nearly 347,000 unpaid Ohio Turnpike tolls from 2024 — a number that’s been given grace since the open road tolling system was introduced last spring. That grace period is set to end in February.

“Beginning Feb. 3, 2025, the commission will start issuing late fees for unpaid tolls,” Ohio Turnpike Communications Director Charles Cyrill said.

The late fee will be $5, and if it remains unpaid, it will be sent for collections on Feb. 10 — “to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office for collections and to the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles for a hold on vehicle registrations,” Cyrill said.

This comes as scammers are using a text-based attack to phish for personal and financial information.

Cyrill wants customers to be aware, and not fall for the scam.

“The Ohio Turnpike does not send invoices by text,” he said. “Collections of unpaid tolls do not occur by text either. Invoices for unpaid tolls are sent to customers only by U.S. mail.”