License plate mix-up: Wisconsin woman charged nearly $2K for unpaid tolls
Wisconsin woman charged nearly $2K for unpaid tolls
A license plate mix-up leads to thousands of dollars in unpaid toll invoices for one woman.
GLENDALE, Wis. - A license plate mix-up leads to thousands of dollars in unpaid toll invoices for one woman.
License plate mix-up
What we know:
Wynn Welch's license plate is a testament to her faith. She chose the plate "HEABLE" to spread the word that "He is able."
"I love when people say, "Oh Wynn, what does your plate stand for?" said Welch. "That opens a door for me to tell them all about God."
Welch chose the plate after surviving cancer in her lung and brain.
"I've got personal experience that God is able," said Welch.
Wynn Welch
Unpaid invoices
Dig deeper:
Welch's license plate ministry is not without tribulations. The Glendale woman showed Contact 6 the stack of invoices she received from the Illinois Tollway for unpaid tolls. The invoices date back to 2021.
"There's a picture on every one of them," Welch said. "That's not my vehicle."
The license plates shown on the invoices are 'HE ABLE.' The plates are almost identical to Welch's 'HEABLE.'
"We're talking about thousands of dollars with my name attached to it. My address attached to it," said Welch.
Trying to correct the problem
The backstory:
Welch says upon receiving the first toll bill in September 2021, she visited the Wisconsin DMV on Mill Road in Milwaukee.
"They looked up in their system and they said, 'You're absolutely right,'" recalled Welch.
Wynn Welch
Given the similarities between the two plates, the DMV took action. Since Welch's plate was registered first, DMV rescinded the plate 'HE ABLE' in 2021. It informed the other driver that the plate was no longer valid.
The toll invoices kept coming. In 2023, Welch says she sent the Illinois Tollway a copy of a DMV letter stating that the license plate isn't hers.
That didn't stop the toll bills either. In 2025, Welch decided to write to Contact 6.
"I said, "I know who's going to settle this for me. FOX6," said Welch.
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Contact 6 reached out to the Wisconsin DMV on Welch's behalf. Eight days later, the DMV sent the Illinois Tollway a certified letter.
The letter asked the agency "to remove Ms. Wynn Welch as the recipient of these tollway violations in your state as she was not and is not the correct plate holder of the vehicles in your photos..."
Within two weeks, Welch got a letter stating that "all unpaid tolls ... have been dismissed."
DMV response
What they're saying:
The DMV's Office of Public Affairs tells Contact 6, "It is illegal to drive with plates that are not valid. We hope all agencies share our vision to keep the roads safe, beginning with property vehicle registration..."
The Illinois Tollway tells Contact 6 it dismissed the $1,950.91 in unpaid tolls and fees.
A Tollway spokesperson says it flagged the license plate to ensure Welch is not mistakenly billed for tolls accrued by the "HE ABLE" plate's driver, again. It also contacted the plate's owner to resolve the unpaid tolls and fees.
Welch told Contact 6 she has concerns the mix-up won't end there. She went ahead and ordered a new license plate.
"The problem is, they still have (the plate) in their possession," said Welch.
Finding the other plateholder
The other side:
In its letter to the Tollway, Wisconsin DMV said the owner of the other plate lives in Janesville. Contact 6 found her in a house near the downtown area.
Standing on her doorstep, the woman said she'd received a call from the Illinois Tollway a couple of weeks prior.
The woman stated she didn't realize her plates were canceled until a law enforcement officer pulled her over last month. She said she'd thought she had a working transponder for the tollway the entire time.
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"I can't believe this," she said.
The woman showed Contact 6 the "HE ABLE" license plate she'd already removed from the car.
"HE ABLE means God the Father," she explained. "He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly."
Despite the 'HE ABLE' plate being canceled, it had a 2026 registration sticker on it. Contact 6 emailed the woman asking about the sticker but did not hear back.
The Wisconsin DMV does not have any record of a renewal for the revoked plate since 2020.
Tollway response
What they're saying:
The Illinois Tollway said it regrets the error and inconvenience for Welch. It told Contact 6 this rarely happens because it's unusual for states to issue license plates with the same combination of letters and numbers.
Have a consumer problem?
What you can do:
If you have a consumer problem and want to see if Contact 6 can help, file a complaint form here: https://www.fox6now.com/news/submit-a-contact-6-inquiry
The Source: Information for this report comes from invoices and letters provided by Wynn Welch. Additional information comes from the Illinois Tollway and the Wisconsin DMV/DOT.