Drivers struggle to pay Dartford Crossing charge after website crashed following ‘system update’ that has left users stuck in virtual queues for hours
- Motorists are struggling to pay Dart Charge to cross between Essex and Kent
- They are being put in a queue to ‘manage high demand’ after system upgrade
Motorists trying to pay the £2 charge to use the Dartford Crossing between Essex and Kent have been left irate after being unable to access a new payment system.
Drivers have flooded social media to complain that they cannot pay the Dart Charge for crossing the River Thames using the tunnels or Queen Elizabeth II Bridge.
Frustrated customers have reported having to spend hours on the phone or online attempting to pay the charge following the new system going live last Friday.
Those trying to pay online on the Dart Charge website were being placed in a queue to ‘manage high demand’, with officials saying systems were ‘currently at capacity’.
Among those facing issues was broadcaster and podcast host Jemma Forte, who tweeted Dart Charge last night to say: ‘Crossed the Dartford Tunnel on Thursday.
The Dartford Crossing is made up of two tunnels and the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge (file image)
Those trying to pay the Dart Charge were being placed in a queue to ‘manage high demand’
‘Have been trying to pay on and off ever since. Website is either not working or puts you in a queue which never gets anywhere. Will never get this time back. Will you waive charge or fix it please? Asking for my sanity.’
What is the Dart Charge and what should you do if you’re unable to pay on the website?
Motorists need to pay the Dart Charge if they use the Dartford Crossing in either direction between 6am and 10pm on any day of the week.
They must pay the charge by midnight on the day after they cross.
Cars, including trailers, motorhomes and any minibuses that have nine or less seats must pay £2 if they have an account or £2.50 if they do not.
As for buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles, if they have two axles, account holders must pay £2.63 and non-account holders £3. The charge for vehicles with more than two axles is £5.19 with an account or £6 without.
Local residents can apply for a discount if they pay council tax to Dartford or Thurrock councils. They can either pay £20 a year to use the crossing as many times as they want; or pay £10 for 50 crossings, plus 20p for each additional crossing.
Motorcycles, mopeds and quad bikes go free – as do those who get free UK vehicle tax because of a disability.
Those who do not pay the Dart Charge can get a £70 fine which must be paid within 28 days of receiving a Penalty Charge Notice. The fine is reduced to £35 if the driver pays within 14 days, or increased to £105 if they do not pay it.
At the moment, National Highways has extended payment deadlines to ensure everyone has time to pay the charge.
Account holders have until August 31 to update their card details on the website. Non-account holders who use the crossing between July 27 and August 14 have until August 15 to pay.
Other motorists left incensed by the system failure included Danny Thompson who tweeted: ‘It is total carnage. The new system is a mess. Instructions to customers is non-existent.’
He said he was unable to replace a direct debit, only remove it, and found that debit or credit cars could be registered instead, ‘if you can get on’, adding: ‘Over 90 minutes last night for us.’
Also trying to get payment sorted was Zoe Dickinson, who said: ‘Can someone have the decency to reply to people? I’ve validated card details but there’s no option to pay through my account so logged off and put in the vehicle reg but says the payments are for future payments, not past ones. I’ve got 23 vehicles to pay for.’
And Chris Ball tweeted: ‘Communicate, communicate, communicate. It is not exceptionally high usage as you asked everyone with an account to revalidate their card for payment after July 28.
‘Therefore the amount of users logging on was to be expected. You have had two years to get ready for this changeover.’
National Highways has now had to extend the payment deadlines to help motorists, with account holders given until August 31 to update their card details online.
Non-account holders crossing between July 27 and August 14 now have until August 15 to pay.
Cars cost £2 for account holders and £2.50 for non-account holders.
National Highways apologised for the problems but said the Dart Charge website and call centres were both operating and it had now brought in ‘service improvements’.
The system changes took place because US services provider Conduent took over responsibility for vehicle identification, payment processing and account management.
Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) are still being issued and handled by Barcelona-based global company Emovis, which has offices in Leeds that handle the Dart Charge.
National Highways promised in June that Dart Charge customers would ‘see improvements on the website, making it an easier and more accessible service’.
This meant that account holders would need to re-validate their payment cards from last Friday. National Highways also warned at the time that PCNs could be issued to those whose crossings are not automatically paid due to invalid card details.
But in a softening of the approach following the major issues faced by customers, it has now confirmed that drivers will get more time to change their card details.
READ MORE Rishi Sunak under new pressure to woo drivers as poll shows Labour is now more popular with car owners as he targets low-traffic neighbourhoods and 20mph zones – amid Tory row over electric cars
A National Highways spokesman told MailOnline today: ‘The Dart Charge websites and customer contact centres are all operating. We apologise for the service issues users have faced over the last few days and have implemented service improvements.
‘While customers may still experience short delays, the average online wait time is now less than five minutes.
‘We have further extended payment deadlines to ensure everyone has sufficient time to pay the charge. Dart Charge account holders have until August 31 to update their card details on the website.
‘Non-account holders who use the crossing between July 27 and August 14 have until August 15 to pay the charge. We apologise again for the inconvenience which was due to essential system updates.’
The Dart Charge applies each day between 6am and 10pm and is for most vehicles except for motorcycles and those who get free UK vehicle tax because of a disability. While cars with an account pay £2, large vehicles pay £5.19.
Those who do not pay the Dart Charge can get a £70 fine, which is reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days – or increased to £105 if not paid within 28 days.
In its most recent message issued yesterday, Dart Charge tweeted: ‘We are experiencing an exceptionally high demand for the Dart Charge contact centre and website which means our systems are currently at capacity and therefore people are struggling to access the website and our call centre advisors.
‘We are working hard to resolve this and your patience is appreciated. Please be assured that we will be extending the payment period for crossings made to account for the system issues.’
Source: Read Full Article
