Folks in Fort Worth looking to settle up with municipal courts now have a fresh alternative to the traditional pilgrimage to the courthouse steps. As reported by the City of Fort Worth's official news, city dwellers can utilize VanillaDirect Pay to handle their citation payments in cold hard cash at a number of local retailers, including familiar spots like CVS and 7-Eleven.
The process begins simply enough, with the issuance of a digital or printed barcode through the court's payment portal. After clutching said barcode, residents can head to any participating CVS, Walgreens, Family Dollar, or 7-Eleven store. Once there, they'll find themselves at check-out where a $1.50 convenience fee gets tacked onto their tab—a minor surcharge for the avoidance of courthouse lines and bureaucratic tape. However, it’s crucial to note that this convenience fee should not be added by residents themselves; rather will be applied automatically by cashiers.
"Residents should keep the receipt as proof of payment in case of any disputes or issues," as per the Fort Worth news announcement, reinforcing the importance of holding onto that little slip of paper post-transaction. Receipt in hand, citizens can breathe easy knowing there's tangible proof of their dues being dutifully paid.
Moreover, the new payment option boasts a kind of versatility that standard courthouse hours can't beat. Payments via VanillaDirect Pay can be made during the broad swath of hours that these retail stores operate, providing a significant level of convenience for residents with varying schedules. And when it comes to tackling multiple fines, they can all be rolled into a single barcode, and yet just a single convenience fee applies, no matter how many cases are wrapped up in that one transaction.
