FASTag: What, How & Why

[CasualSurfer]

Final update on Fastag procurement.

No one from HQ responded to the email, phone calls. So from the original email, got hold of the in-charge for Karnataka (a guy named Nagaraj). Spoke to him on 18th Sept (Monday evening). He gave his official Sahaj email id & asked me to forward those documents, as all the email ids (earlier ones) were of HQ & that they will not attend to this?!

So sent him those documents. He promised to revert in 2 working days. Called him up on Wed (20th Sept) morning to remind things. Got the Fastag account & wallet activated on 20th Sept night. And he promised to deliver the next day. After speaking to him around 10am on 21st Sept & gave him addresses where I will be (office & non-office hours). Told him to call before coming. Finally he called at 8pm. Told him to come to Lalbagh (2 kms from my home) & collected the RFID from him. Registered online & recharged as well.

So if you get the right contacts (especially procuring from banks), your processes are pretty simple & predictable.

Have to use it this weekend to confirm usage.

 

[CasualSurfer]

Final update on Fastag procurement.
Have to use it this weekend to confirm usage.

Just used it today @ Devanahalli & Bagepalli tools (Bangalore - Hyderabad highway) & returned the same way. Forward journey @ Devanahalli, manual scanner. Manual scanner was the first time Fastag was used. Not yet debited from eWallet. Rest were automatic. The other 3 debits appeared within 5min. Had to rush back to home (after checking in two tolls) for my daughter's movie appointment (new Pokemon movie) in Hungama.

Since I returned on the same day, I have to ask them to credit me with the difference of the day pass amount.

It was a joy to breeze through. Very well worth the wait.

 

[anilkumark]

Hello all,

I got fastag via PayTM. It was fast and Reliable than others.

1. Ordered Fastag in PayTM app.
2. Got an SMS to upload image of RC of the car.
3. Uploaded image.
4. Sent a follow-up email to support team.
5. Fastag was ready to dispatch for three days.
6. Sent an another email follow up.
7. Fastag came in three days.
8. Sent another email for activation.
9. Activated in a day and attached to my PayTM account automatically.
10. I drove and driving without any problems from then.

Advantages:
1. Easy procurement.
2. Less paperwork and documentation needed.
3. Activated and no issues at tolls.
4. Attached with PayTM wallet which eases everything. This one is web based in other banks.
5. Charges are : Tag - 200, deposit - 150 and wallet - 150.

Disadvantages:
1.Customer care don't know the exact status of fastag order.
2. Requires to send emails which in turn won't be answered but actioned upon.

Trick: just add ceo@paytm.com in email along with the support I'd. ;)

My story has good ending as I didn't face any problems so far...

 

[nish]

Hello all,

I got fastag via PayTM. It was fast and Reliable than others.

1. Ordered Fastag in PayTM app.
2. Got an SMS to upload image of RC of the car.
3. Uploaded image.
4. Sent a follow-up email to support team.
5. Fastag was ready to dispatch for three days.
6. Sent an another email follow up.
7. Fastag came in three days.
8. Sent another email for activation.
9. Activated in a day and attached to my PayTM account automatically.
10. I drove and driving without any problems from then.

Advantages:
1. Easy procurement.
2. Less paperwork and documentation needed.
3. Activated and no issues at tolls.
4. Attached with PayTM wallet which eases everything. This one is web based in other banks.
5. Charges are : Tag - 200, deposit - 150 and wallet - 150.

Disadvantages:
1.Customer care don't know the exact status of fastag order.
2. Requires to send emails which in turn won't be answered but actioned upon.

Trick: just add ceo@paytm.com in email along with the support I'd. ;)

My story has good ending as I didn't face any problems so far...

I am also planning to buy from paytm as the current icici tag i hold is a nightmare on the part of web login and recharge. The site is notuser friendly and it charges tax + service to recharge tag.

May i ask what is 150+150 charged for in paytm?

 

[vijay_968]

Rs 150 as a (refundable ?) deposit.

Rs 150 amount credited in account for use at TollPlazas.

 

[P3T3R]

I got mine from PayTM. Used the App to order. I had uploaded a jpg image of my RC so I received a mail and phone call to send a png image. Did the same and got the tag in a few days. But I was already on board my ship by then so didn't get to see it or fix it. Anyway there are no Tolls in Goa so I'll fix it when I get back haome.

 

[ankathil.arjun]

I was among the early adopters of fastag and my experience with fastag has had its ups and downs.
I got my fastag in August/September 2016, before demonetization happened, and when fastag was not much in demand.
I had been through different branches of ICICI where it was mostly not available. Later during one of my drives to Hyderabad, I came to know that one of the toll operators was having fastags and I got one for myself.
On the way back, I noticed that many places still did not have fastag lanes functional. Some had closed them entirely and some would be opened only when the see the car. As most of the time, the person who had to open the barricade to the fastag lane was not there, I had to wait, and it was in fact faster to pay by cash, as most tolls were not very crowded.

However, in 2017, things started improving. Most tolls improved the implementation and added exclusive fastag lanes. Also, most trucks also started using Fastag.
This is a good thing, as the majority highway users were moving to fastag. However, as every system is made, we have people who are great to break the system.
I noticed that in many tolls, they would not have the stop gate after the booth. So, in order to check if the vehicle has enough balance to cross the booth, they would stop the vehicle in the start of the lane, scan and only then allow them to go ahead. This was specifically done for trucks as they would have to pay higher amounts.

This in turn lead to bottlenecks in the start of fastag lanes.

Also, somewhere around April, I was getting an error that my fastag is blacklisted.
When I called the call center, they informed me that there has been some problem with my fastag and that I would need to replace it. I was told that I would have to pay INR 200 for the replacement. When I told them, that it was not my fault that the tag stopped working and it was in fact a problem from their side, they said that I can go back to the place I got the fastag to get a free replacement.
As traveling to Hyderabad was not an option, I got it from ICICI Bank, by paying 200. Even though it was an extra cost,I still feel its worth it for the smoothness of travel it gives during highway journeys.

Another issue was of non fastag users coming into the fastag lanes. This is very common even now, especially during long weekends. Though, its clearly mentioned that non fastag users should not be entering the lane, they do enter, and the toll operators collect money from them and let them go without any fine.

They do not pay heed even if you complaint to them.

Other than a few tolls near Bangalore , I have not seen very good implementation of fastag in most tolls.

When I had called the ICICI Fastag call center to inform them about the issue, they said that they are responsible only for the fastag related issues and cannot help if the toll operators are not maintaining fastag lanes properly.

The fastag app, was a new info that I learnt from this thread, and I hope it would be helpful to report the toll booths which are ruining the usage experience of fastag.

Fastag does save time in most cases, but I have to agree, there are situations where I would rather use the other lanes, as they would be empty. However, fastag has made life much simpler in highway drives, when I had to keep the co passenger looking ahead about the toll rates, find exact change, and store the toll receipt. Now, I don't have to worry about all that, and can just concentrate more on the drive and the maps.

 

[CasualSurfer]

A query about Fastag toll deduction. I have seen that if you cross a toll to & fro in a day, it considers as a return fare (with a discount).

The query is whether (a) Is it 24 hrs from the entry date/time? or (b) Does it expire by midnight of the day of entry of a toll?

 

[nish]

A query about Fastag toll deduction. I have seen that if you cross a toll to & fro in a day, it considers as a return fare (with a discount).

The query is whether (a) Is it 24 hrs from the entry date/time? or (b) Does it expire by midnight of the day of entry of a toll?

Its always 24 hours.

 

[vijay_968]

A query about Fastag toll deduction. I have seen that if you cross a toll to & fro in a day, it considers as a return fare (with a discount).

The query is whether (a) Is it 24 hrs from the entry date/time? or (b) Does it expire by midnight of the day of entry of a toll?

I was NOT aware that the 24 Hrs discount is applicable to Tags also, as I couldn't locate it in the Net. I was avoiding Tag lane and paying cash in normal lanes (for "return trips" in 24 Hrs).

Could you please provide a link ? I will feel more confident. Thanks in advance.

 

[vijay_968]

November 03, 2017

A notification issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said on Friday, "Motor Vehicles sold on and after December 1, 2017 shall be fitted with FASTag ... ... by the manufacturer of the vehicle or its authorised dealer, as the case may be. Link here.

I hope they increase the number of Tag Lanes.

 

[CasualSurfer]

I was NOT aware that the 24 Hrs discount is applicable to Tags also, as I couldn't locate it in the Net. I was avoiding Tag lane and paying cash in normal lanes (for "return trips" in 24 Hrs). Could you please provide a link ? I will feel more confident. Thanks in advance.

My bad, I should have been clearer. They don't give a discount. But they charge the return fare (remaining amount). For example, I crossed Bagepalli Toll at 1225pm (charged @ Rs 85/-) & returned at 1245pm (charged @ Rs 40/-). The return fare for the toll is Rs 125/-. This is what I had meant.

November 03, 2017

A notification issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said on Friday, "Motor Vehicles sold on and after December 1, 2017 shall be fitted with FASTag ... ... by the manufacturer of the vehicle or its authorised dealer, as the case may be. Link here.

I hope they increase the number of Tag Lanes.

It is a welcome move, provided the Fastag lanes are increased dramatically. Or at-least they should have dedicated lanes for cars. The trucks cause lots of delays, more often than not, cash lanes have better timeframes in most tolls excepting in rush hours.

 

[A.G.]

The return fare (within 24 hours) system is a mess in FASTag. While on some tolls it works smoothly, on others it deducts full amount for each usage of toll. Learned it the hard way when had been debited close to 3 times the toll amount instead of the actual when accounted for the multiple trip with-in 24 hours discount. It's almost a month and still matter is 'pending investigation' at ICICI FASTag. After this, I have resorted to paying in cash for multiple / return trips in 24 hours.

 

[vijay_968]

Thank you very much CasualSurfer and A.G. for the useful info.

I will continue to pay cash for trips within 24 Hrs period. If I use the Tag and get charged more, chances of my Hi Command reducing my smartness rating from -50 to -75 are more

 

[SilverEyez]

hi Friends,
bought myself a Fastag from Equitas online.
The whole process was very simple and quick.
Logged onto the website which is very user friendly, filled the form, uploaded the RC book jpeg file, paid through Debit card and done. Got the delivery within 2 days. HASSLE FREE.
Charges: 1 time fee =200/- refundable deposit = 200/- min bal = 100/- and with taxes total comes to 568/-
CON: they dont accept payments through NEFT and CREDIT CARDS.
yet to use it on the Tolls.
will keep updating.