A friend of mine has launched into retirement by buying an RV and driving it around the American west. He recently related this story:
In April, I camped at Sunset Campground in Death Valley National Park. I paid my camping fees using my ATM card in one of the machines provided. That payment was never deducted from my account until today, September 27th, 2012. That is over 5 months to process a payment. In addition, the check-in/check-out dates printed on my receipt were 1980 dates…32 years in the past! This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Over 5 years ago, I camped at the same campground, paying my fees in the same way. Those fees were never deducted from my account. The National Park Service is always complaining about budget cuts. But so many cuts that they can’t collect their fees in a timely manner?
I suppose I will be seeing the charge for my stay 5 years ago now.”