Anyone who drives around in a vehicle has seen a toll booth, while on road trip with friends and family at some point in their lives. When our cars stop at a toll collection booth, we pay road tax to ensure the road safety and security. This toll payment is the most common type of road tax which is collected from us. This road tax is calculated based on various factors like engine capacity, unladen weight, cost price and seating capacity. One hindrance we all face is the payment method.

Imagine you are stuck at a toll booth and you are short of change, what will you do? How are you going to pay up in an awkward situation when 10 other cars are lined up behind you? The answer to these questions is Electronic Toll Collection (ETC).

WHAT IS ETC?

ETC is an electronic payment that can be made at highway tolls without any human intervention. This system uses Roadside communication technologies with vehicles, allowing electronic transactions between vehicles and the toll collection agency.

FASTAG

FASTag is the most commonly used ETC device which uses Radio frequency Identification (RFID) technology for making toll payments directly from the linked prepaid or savings account. This tag is available at all tag issuers and if it is linked to a payment method, then you need to recharge this tag as per requirement.

Fastag is acceptable across 490 national highway toll booths and 39+ selected state highway toll booths. Every toll plaza has been allotted a Fastag lane where only Fastag is accepted. The other lanes are also Fastag enabled but will accept other payment forms too.

HOW TO USE FASTag?

The government of India has made it compulsory for all vehicles being sold with affect from 1st Oct 2017 have to be affixed with an active Fastag. It is affixed on the windscreen of your vehicle and enables you to drive through all toll booths which accept it, without stopping you for cash payments. The “Fastag partner app” has integrated with 5000+ agencies in the country to access its platform and so that Fastag can be activated at the time of vehicle’s delivery. The last date of availing the FASTag has been extended till 15th January 2020 by the government, after that it will be compulsory to have a FASTag . In case you haven’t applied for a FASTag, you can click on Apply now to get yours.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED

• Registration certificate
• KYC documents of the vehicle owner
• Passport size Photograph
• Driving License
• PAN card
• Aadhaar card with residential address
• (Driving license is acceptable for address and ID proof)

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF FASTag?

• FINANCIAL MOBILITY-   There is no headache of carrying cash, mostly loose change all the time while you are travelling through states or cities.
• SAVE ON FUEL AND TIME-

FASTag saves you a lot of time and money. Waiting in long ques with your car fuel burning is both a hole in your pocket and wastage of time, FASTag removes this hindrance because the amount is deducted automatically, and you won’t have to stop at the toll gate.

• RECHARGEABLE-  You can recharge your FASTag account online through credit card, debit card, NEFT, Net banking, RTGS, Paytm etc. This is way more convenient than any other payment method.
• NOTIFICATION-   You will be notified each time a transaction takes place through SMS alerts on your registered mobile number.
• WEBPAGE ACCESS-   As a consumer you have access to the Fastag consumer portal where you can check all the statements online.

IS THERE A FEE TO AVAIL FASTag?

In order to avail the Fastag facility there is a one-time fee of INR 200. The refundable security deposit will depend on your vehicle type. All the necessary information is mentioned on the website of Issuer agencies.

Payment technology has taken a giant leap in the past decade, so much so that you can make all your payments through multiple platforms at the comfort of your home at any time. Fastag is one such technology which is linked to different payment methods which eases out the whole process and saves you your precious time and money.

Talking of saving time and money, we have a lot of options in Travel & fuel cards which you can use to make payments for fuel or flight reservations. A fuel credit card earns you waivers on fuel surcharge while a travel credit card helps you earn frequent flyer points on flight bookings to make your travel memorable. So, log on to CreditKaro.com and check out some amazing deals.