The Ministry of Transportation is considering a change in policy after an ongoing CityNews investigation into parking tickets that aren't issued by the city.

The next time you find a ticket on your windshield, examine it carefully.  You may find it's from the Municipal Parking Authority, a private agency that issues fines on behalf of its clients to drivers who park in spaces reserved for others. But it's not a City of Toronto ticket and there's been a lot of controversy about whether you should even be paying those other citations at all.

The good news is, by law, you don't have to pay them.  So what's the bad news?

Apparently the province has been helping the agency collect the bogus fines using your own confidential information.

They're getting access to where you live using the province's own vehicle database.  The Transportation Ministry admits the province is making a big mistake.

" Citytv has been kind enough to bring the information to my attention so I can now direct the ministry to investigate and take appropriate action," said Ontario Transportation Minister Jim Bradley.
 
"I think we can expect action," he adds.  "The first thing they have to do is look into it to determine the validity of arguments being made."

That's music to the ears of drivers like Joe Homsy.  He's being hounded by a collection agency after receiving one of the illegitimate tickets.

"It looks exactly like a City of Toronto ticket except it's white versus yellow," he explains.  "They have the municipal parking corporation symbol on there. It looks like a city ticket."

"These companies, there's an incentive to give out tickets with high prices, so they should be subject to some sort of regulations," he adds.

Here's how to tell the difference between the tickets:

Colour
The ones issued by the city of Toronto are yellow in colour. The Municipal Parking versions tend to be white or slightly off-white. This is your first tip-off. Click here to see the real thing or see the comparison above.

Look for the logo
The tickets issued by police have the City of Toronto's logo on them. The others one don't. They try to mimic the real thing but they don't quite make it.

Check the charge
The police enforce laws against parking in illegal spots and cite the rules that were broken. The Municipal Parking Corporation is hired by property owners to enforce their rules on private lots. They claim to use the trespassing laws to justify their fines. You can see their website here.