FASTag Wrong Deduction: How to Get Your Toll Refund

"FASTag deducted toll twice at the same plaza", "I was charged the truck rate for my car", or "toll was deducted from a plaza I never crossed". The fix: raise a dispute with your FASTag issuer (the bank or app where you recharge it) with the SMS details, call NHAI's 1033 helpline for national highway plazas, and escalate to the RBI Ombudsman if the issuer does not resolve it within 30 days.

FASTag disputes are small amounts, which is exactly why many people ignore them. A ₹235 error every month is ₹2,820 a year. Here is how to get it back.

Common wrong deductions and why they happen

Know the current rules (as of October 2026)

• Annual pass: NHAI's FASTag annual pass costs ₹3,075 for FY 2026-27 (up from ₹3,000), valid for one year or 200 crossings, whichever comes first. It works only for private non-commercial vehicles at national highway and national expressway fee plazas; state-run roads still charge normally.
• Penalty for no valid FASTag: Since 15 November 2025, a vehicle without a valid, working FASTag pays twice the fee in cash, or 1.25 times if paying by UPI, under the amended National Highways Fee Rules, 2008.
• Blacklist timing: Under NPCI's NETC rules effective February 2025, a tag that was blacklisted or low on balance for more than 60 minutes before reaching the plaza, and stays so for 10 minutes after the read, can be declined. Recharging at the booth no longer helps, so check your tag's status before a trip.
• KYV: NHAI discontinued routine Know Your Vehicle (KYV) checks for cars, jeeps and vans from 1 February 2026; issuers must now verify vehicle details against VAHAN before activation. KYV is needed only if there is a complaint such as a loose or wrongly issued tag.

Step-by-step: what to do

In the first hour (or as soon as you see the SMS)

1. Read the SMS or app entry. Note the plaza name, date, time, amount, vehicle number and transaction ID. These are the facts every complaint needs.
2. Check the vehicle class. Look at the tag details in your issuer's app. If it says the wrong class, that explains a higher deduction and needs correcting, not just a refund.
3. Check your tag status. If it shows "blacklisted" or "low balance" when it should not, take a screenshot.

On the first day

4. Raise a dispute with the issuer. Most bank apps and FASTag portals have "raise dispute" or "report wrong deduction" next to each toll entry. Select the transaction and the reason (double deduction, wrong class, not travelled). Note the complaint number.
5. Call NHAI's 1033 helpline for national highway plazas, with the same details. NHAI uses this to follow up with the plaza operator.
6. Collect proof. For "did not travel" disputes: your car's location on a phone map timeline, a parking receipt, office entry log or fuel bill elsewhere at that time. For wrong class: a photo of the RC.

If not resolved

7. Follow up in writing after 7 to 10 days. Your issuer has to recover the amount from the toll plaza's bank through NPCI's NETC dispute process, which can take a few weeks. Ask for the status and any NPCI dispute reference.
8. Escalate to the issuer's grievance or nodal officer. Their details are on the issuer's website.
9. File with the RBI Ombudsman at cms.rbi.org.in if the issuer does not reply within 30 days, rejects without a reason, or you disagree. Bank and other RBI-regulated FASTag issuers are covered. Under the Reserve Bank – Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2026, file within 90 days of the end of the 30-day reply period or the issuer's last reply, whichever is later.

Worked example: why small errors add up

Suppose a car owner on a ₹235 plaza route sees three problems in six months:

The rates above are illustrative; check the actual fee for your plaza and vehicle class on NHAI's website or app. If the wrong vehicle class is never fixed, the overcharge repeats on every trip.

Annual pass check: at ₹3,075 for up to 200 crossings, each covered crossing costs about ₹3,075 ÷ 200 = ₹15.38. If a covered plaza deducts ₹235, you have been overcharged ₹235 for that crossing, since the pass should have been used.

Tolls, fuel and parking are real costs of owning a car. If you are financing one, include them in your monthly budget alongside the loan instalment from our EMI calculator.

Ready-to-copy complaint message

Subject: Wrong FASTag deduction – request for refund

Dear Sir/Madam,

FASTag ID / vehicle number: [number] Transaction ID(s): [ID] Plaza: [name], Date and time: [date, time], Amount: ₹[amount]

This deduction is incorrect because [it was deducted twice within (x) minutes / my vehicle class is car/jeep/van but I was charged the (class) rate / my vehicle was at (location) at that time and did not cross this plaza / my FASTag annual pass was active and this plaza is a national highway fee plaza].

Supporting documents attached: [SMS screenshot, RC copy, location proof].

Please refund ₹[excess amount] to my FASTag / account and correct the [vehicle class / pass status] so this does not recur. Complaint already raised on [date], reference [number]; also reported to NHAI 1033 on [date].

If this is not resolved within 30 days, I will approach the RBI Ombudsman.

Regards, [Name], [registered mobile]

What not to do

• Do not search for "FASTag customer care" numbers online. Fake helplines are common. Use the number in your issuer's app or on its official website, or 1033.
• Do not share OTPs or install apps for anyone offering to fix your FASTag.
• Do not argue at the booth and drive through. Pay if required, keep the receipt, and dispute later.
• Do not keep a loose tag in the glovebox or on the dashboard. NHAI treats loose FASTags as misuse and they can be blacklisted.
• Do not buy a second FASTag for the same vehicle. Only one active tag per vehicle is allowed; duplicates cause double reads and blacklisting.
• Do not ignore small amounts. Disputes are easiest within days, while plaza records are fresh.

Prevent repeat problems

• Turn on SMS alerts for every toll deduction and read them the same day.
• Keep a buffer balance above any minimum your issuer sets, and enable auto-recharge if you drive often.
• Check the vehicle class on your tag once, and correct it with the issuer if wrong.
• Fix the tag on the inside of the windscreen as instructed, so it reads cleanly the first time.

If the money left your bank account through an auto-recharge that failed or did not reach the tag, the issue is a failed transaction, not a toll error; see our guide on money debited but not credited. For UPI auto-recharges you want to stop, see how to cancel a UPI autopay mandate.

Key takeaways

• Dispute wrong FASTag deductions with your issuer first, using the transaction ID, plaza, time and amount; call NHAI 1033 for national highway plazas.
• Common causes are duplicate reads, wrong vehicle class, manual entries and annual pass errors.
• The annual pass is ₹3,075 for FY 2026-27, for 200 crossings or a year, and works only at national highway and expressway plazas.
• Since 15 November 2025, vehicles without a valid FASTag pay 2 times the toll in cash or 1.25 times by UPI.
• If the issuer does not resolve your complaint in 30 days, file at cms.rbi.org.in.