PONCHATOULA - An $800 fine and a license suspension from the Office of Motor Vehicles vanished after a year and a half, but it took the help of 2 On Your Side to get there.

One woman spent that year and a half driving her husband to and from work because of the fine they vowed not to pay.

"I'm not going to give them my money when they don't deserve it," said Maddison Aikman.

Thursday, Jude Aikman took a seat behind the wheel and drove himself. He says the whole situation has been inconvenient.

"I don't feel it should have took this long to get it resolved," said Jude Aikman.

Jude and Maddison say the fine was not theirs to pay. The charge was tacked on after the card they had been using to pay a lapsed insurance fee was canceled for suspected fraud. Before a new card was in the mail, the OMV tried to debit their account. Things spiraled out of control when Maddison couldn't get anyone to pick up the phone to change the card number or hear her story in person at an OMV office.

"They're doing a really terrible thing and I know it's not just to us," said Maddison Aikman.

In April, 2 On Your Side got involved and learned that the OMV would remove the fine if they could get official documentation from the bank that said the card on file was canceled due to fraud. It took some time to contact the bank, but once the paperwork was issued the fine cleared up.

"It took us a little bit to get the paperwork to the OMV," said Jude Aikman.

Now Jude is back on a payment plan, clearing up fines for lapsed insurance dating back to 2019. The $800 fee is no longer part of that dollar figure. It also means he's back on the road.

"I've been able to take my own self to work," said Jude Aikman.

Last week, OMV Commissioner Dan Casey sat down with 2 On Your Side to talk about a bill passed by the legislature that would reel in those fines for people who lapse insurance. Thousands of people owe the state anywhere from $125 to $30,000.