New Yorkers claim to be charged multiple times for OMNY rides; MTA explains what's going on
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- If you take the subway or the bus and tap to ride, you may have noticed multiple transactions in your credit card statements.
Many commuters are saying they're being billed for trips they didn't take, and some are claiming they've been billed two or even three times just for one ride.
The MTA is telling riders not to worry.
Now that the system is contactless and pay-as-you-go, you may not see a single report of $2.90. The MTA says what may be reflected as a charge reported is only pending authorizations, and no MTA customer is being billed for rides you do not take.
"In this economy, I am pinching pennies and I can't afford and after the two rides that I haven't taken," Kat Agostin said.
Kat Agostin say her commute, which is a train from Queens to midtown and the bus home, has become really confusing and she blames the OMNY payment system.
She said the contactless kiosk is now her only choice to purchase rides where she gets on in Jamaica.
"It's just very complicated. It charges you for transfers. It delays the payment, and sometimes it won't scan, you'll get denied by the reader," Agostin said.
The comic book store employee recently expressed her frustration in an email to the MTA.
"I was charged for every single swipe but only the transfers went through the rest were rejected. Some of us live paycheck to paycheck and six dollars a day is all I have for my commute," the email said in part.
The MTA responded to their customer's email with a detailed explanation.
"We did not receive authorization from your bank to collect and process the fare, even though we did not collect, the system allowed you to ride and as a result your account was declared negative," the agency said.
"The next time you tap the same communication occurs but an attempt is made to first collect on the previously uncollected trip. The charge in question was to recover the previously uncollected fare and clear the negative balance," it continued.
7 On Your Side's Nina Pineda asked the MTA to examine Agoarin charges.
A spokesperson said she only paid for the rides she took. They pulled her card and said she only rode the subway, and took an express bus and by the time she tried to swipe again, she only had $.40 left.
Customers could be seeing multiple charges in a single day.
The MTA says riders should be aware. A certain amount is authorized, but the cards are not actually charged.
Those are authorizations only as in pending charges which will go through as you ride.
They added, "We are not aware of a single person being overcharged."
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