Palakkad: A woman who neither owns a vehicle nor knows how to ride one was shocked to receive a traffic violation notice imposing a ₹1,000 fine for riding without a helmet.

The notice was issued to Sumaiyya, the wife of Haneefa, residing in Mannarkkad. The family was stunned when the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) notice arrived by post, accusing her of riding a scooter without a helmet.

On checking the notice, the address was indeed correct, but the camera image attached showed two men riding a scooter without helmets. The footage was captured by an MVD camera on the national highway at Panayampadam, according to the notice.

The Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Palakkad had imposed a ₹1,000 fine for the helmet violation. When the family approached the Mannarkkad RTO to clarify the error, officials confirmed that the address matched Sumaiyya’s details.

Later, using the vehicle number, the phone number of the actual vehicle owner was accessed from the MVD’s website. When Haneefa called the number provided, it came to light that the vehicle owner’s wife was also named Sumaiyya, and even the family name was the same. The owner lived in Kanjirapuzha and her husband used the scooter regularly.

Realising that the fine was meant for the other family, Haneefa informed them about the penalty. He said the confusion likely happened due to a mix-up in postal addresses.