Only 2,244 bills in excess of Lm5 were issued after the first month of operation of the Controlled Vehicle Access System in Valletta, while another 33,925 motorists are expected to receive their bills at the end of July.

It must be noted that about 69,663 vehicles were reported to have entered Valletta in May (the CVA system began operating on 1 May), which is more than double the number of vehicles that entered the city when the “V” licence was in effect.

Contacted yesterday, an ADT spokesman said the authority was pleased with the way the system has been operating since it was introduced, even if it is “possibly not yet 100 per cent accurate”.

The spokesman said that since the CVA system is still in its infancy, people are encouraged to provide feedback to the company operating it. Contestations can also be made, if necessary.

The system is completely new and it is possible that there will be hitches, which ADT will deal with, provided that they can identify them after people provide their feedback, said the spokesman.

CVA personnel will deal with each case individually by going through the billing process, the way the invoices are laid out the way they are calculated.

Photographs and details of the transactions may be viewed online or at the CVA office. Queries may also be reported online or in person, while the contestation process may be initiated by filing a signed report at the CVA offices. Customers may also initiate a contestation process online. This must be done within 20 days from the date when the invoice would have been issued.

Contestations may incur an administrative charge that will be calculated according to the total amount due for the respective bill being contested.

If the customer wins the contestation, no administrative charge will be incurred and any discounts that may have been lost due to the contestation process will be applied retroactively. Any increases in rates that would have been applied due to the contestation process will also be reversed.

If, on the other hand, the customer loses the contestation, the administrative charge will be added to the current outstanding amount to cover the costs of producing an official contestation report. Any discount period or rate increase period will still be applicable from the date on which the bill was issued.

Contestations will be

handled by an independent contestation board appointed by ADT and all the board’s decisions will be final and cannot be re-contested.

The company operating CVA may be found at 83 Winemakers Wharf, Marsa.

CVA personnel can be contacted by telephone on 2206-4000 or by email on [email protected]