New Delhi: A Paytm FASTag user recently reported that he was charged Rs 9 crore as NHAI toll at Mayar toll plaza near Hisar in Haryana. The user, who goes by profile name ‘gsratta’ on Team-bhp forum, said that he received a text message from Paytm stating that his Fastag has been blacklisted due to insufficient balance. When he checked the Paytm app, he saw that he had been charged Rs 9 crore whereas normal toll at the same toll plaza is Rs90.
“Today I received a text message from Paytm, that the Fastag of my vehicle has been blacklisted, due to insufficient balance, on checking in the Paytm application, I came to know that they had charged a whopping Nine crores ( yes that is true) see the attached screenshots. A popup came up to add ₹ 90000000/- to the Paytm wallet to continue using the fastag. Normal toll at the same toll plaza is ₹90. Contacted the helpline number, but it was not useful. How to proceed now. Please advise,” gsratta wrote on Team-bhp.
The user said that they contacted Paytm customer service, but they were unable to resolve the issue.
“The helpline automated system would not let me talk to a customer care person, instead it required me to raise the issue, in the Help & Support section of the Paytm Application. The result from the same was inconclusive. It doesn’t allow screenshots in the Help & Support section, so had to take pictures using another device,” he added.
Another Team-bhp member ‘Emvi’ meanwhile, shared a screenshot showing he was charged Rs 1.5 crore.
Pic – Team-bhp.com/Emvi
Both Emvi and gsratta, however, later confirmed in the forum that the issues were attributed to technical glitches and were subsequently resolved.
These were not first times for Paytm Fastag users to have been charged an exorbitant amount for toll. In 2022, a user was charged Rs 2 lakh for toll. Paytm had said that the charge was due to a technical error and had rectified the same.
Fastag is a prepaid toll collection system that uses radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. When a vehicle passes through a toll plaza, the RFID tag in the Fastag is read and the toll amount is deducted from the user’s account.
The Fastag system has been praised for its convenience and for reducing traffic congestion at toll plazas. However, the recent incidents have raised concerns about the reliability of the system. The NHAI and Paytm need to take steps to address these concerns and to ensure that the Fastag system is a reliable and convenient way to pay tolls.
PNN