SPINEA – He thought he was paying a bill but instead it was the Rai license fee. In the shop, however, there is no television and therefore the payment was not due. The request for reimbursement comes with a cold shower: “You are capable of understanding and wanting.” The story, which happened to the owners of the Belle Venezia pastry shop in Spinea, is told by the Adico of Mestre. The denial arrived with an email from the certified email address of the “Special Fees” office, which concerns equipment used by bars, restaurants and other non-domestic businesses.
The cold shower
“In the communication it oscillates between the surreal and the rude”, they say from Adico, quoting her: “The payment was made by her capable of understanding and wanting, not by force. There may have been an error and Rai has closed the subscription, but the payment made by you cannot be taken back”. The underlying error, however, according to Adico, would not be that of Spinea’s operators: “It all arises from a mistake by Rai which unjustly ordered the Spinea venue to pay 173.19 euros for the possession of theoretically owned television equipment from the venue – they write from Adico -. The payment was diligently honored by the taxpayers, who only later realized that the request concerned the special fee for the pastry shop which, however, does not have any television. Hence an exchange of emails that led to the response provided by the company.” From the Spinea restaurant they had in fact immediately asked the “special fees” office for a refund of the amount erroneously paid last August, equal to 173.19 euros. In an initial response from the office they explained that they had canceled the RAI position of the venue starting from 01/01/2024 but that they could not return the sum. When asked for the reasons, the fee office’s counter-response referred to the customers’ ability to understand and will.
The intervention of the Adico
“At the beginning – says Carlo Garofolini, president of Adico, indignantly – we thought it was a joke but since it involves an exchange of certified e-mails, it seems quite difficult to us. Having said that, let’s say three things. First of all, it is unthinkable that the owners of the venue will not be reimbursed, this seems obvious to me. We are not talking about a motorway fine, where payment of the fine is considered an admission of guilt. We are talking about a TV license requested and paid incorrectly. There is nothing to say, the money must be returned immediately. Last point: how many people pay even if they shouldn’t, precisely because the sums are negligible, and they don’t even check the request carefully? We invite citizens to always check with the utmost attention what is requested because the error is always around the corner”.
