The NSW Opposition is calling for answers following the Minister for Metropolitan Roads’ admission that of the over 45,000 people overcharged for E-TOLL trips in the recent Government tolling bungle, 3,600 drivers were overcharged with “multiple duplicate” transactions.
 
The scandal which was originally characterised by Government as double charging has seen one E-TOLL customer issued with 37 duplicate transactions, and another have $57,000 drained from his account.
 
Shadow Minister for Roads John Graham said:
 
“Transport referred to this as duplicated transaction, the Minister in the House referred to this as people being charged twice, what we have discovered was that neither of those things are true.”
 
“People have been charged time after time, in one case 37 times and in another case being charged $57,000.”
 
“The description the agency is now using is not duplicate transactions which was the original story, but now referring to what they call ‘multiple duplicate’ transactions.”
 
“That is money being stolen out of these peoples accounts, we’re calling for it to be put back there and for the government to explain how this could happen and will it happen again.”
 
Timeline:

• 24 March – NSW Government issued a statement apologising for an E-Toll systems error which had led to some customers being charged with ‘duplicate transactions’
• 30 March – in Question Time the Minister for Metropolitan Roads says some people were double charged: “the automatic top-up may have occurred twice.”
• 31 March – in a written answer to a supplementary question, the Minister admits 3,600 people experienced “multiple duplicate” transactions