COURT UPHOLDS BAN ON SPEEDING FINES:

A New Haven car rental company cannot fine drivers who speed after monitoring its cars with global positioning system technology, the state Supreme Court ruled. In a 5-0 ruling, the high court rejected an appeal by Acme Rent-A-Car, which had challenged a Department of Consumer Protection ruling that prohibited the company from levying the fine. The company used a global positioning system to assess $150 fines on customers who drove faster than 79 mph for more than two minutes.

Acme said the fines were to make up for wear and tear on cars that were driven at excessive speeds. However, a consumer protection hearing officer had determined that the wear and tear in such a case would be about 37 cents. The consumer department concluded that Acme’s policy violated the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act. The case is American Car Rental, Inc. v. Commissioner of Consumer Protection, SC17241.