Ez-Link has yet to justify new charges

[makapaaa]

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Ez-Link has yet to justify new charges
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to the official reply by Ez-Link in the Forum Online on Saturday ('Ez-Link addresses concerns over new charges') which, unfortunately, does not address the concerns that Forum contributors voiced.
I asked about how a service that was previously rendered free of charge for years could suddenly require a convenience fee of 25 cents to cover processing costs. No other merchant that I know of charges for Giro.
In fact, most merchants encourage customers to schedule payments through Giro, and without a DBS/POSB accounts- only limitation.
EZ-Link, in its reply, also mentioned that to encourage cardholders to sign up for the Giro facility, the one-time 'subsidised application fee' of $1.50 would be waived until Feb 26. Before the non-Cepas-compliant cards were introduced, commuters could apply for Giro through the General Ticketing Machines and enjoy the service instantly, without charge.
A seamless process that used to require only the cardholder's DBS/POSB Nets card and PIN has been turned into a form-filling exercise with a 21-day turnaround, with processing expenses to be borne by cardholders.
The only observable convenience in this card exchange exercise appears to be for EZ-Link to start charging its cardholders. I now look forward to other Cepas card issuers such as Nets (the FlashPay Card) to announce their top-up mechanisms and hope they will be more competitive than EZ-Link's offerings. In addition, it may also be an opportunity for me to finally wean myself off the DBS/POSB account that I have long maintained just for ez-link top-ups.
Tan Shao Yi

 

[makapaaa]

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Have a card to rival EZ-link
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to the Forum Online letter, "EZ-Link addresses concerns over new charges", by Mr Gregory Gerald Danker on Saturday and thank Mr Seah Seng Choon from Case for the Forum Online letter, "EZ-Link must justify new charges, says Case".
Mr Danker's reply does not address the root of the issue. Why are consumers, who have been using Giro top-ups for transactions with easy approval and without any fees, now forced to continue this service with the costly and added inconvenience of various fees and an unacceptable waiting time of up to 21 days before the (manual-only) application for such a service is approved?
If the fee and application processing time is so we can use the new card for non-transit applications, I, and I believe thousands of my fellow commuters, would prefer that the Giro top-up facility for non-transit transactions be removed so that our day-to-day activities, such as commuting, are not affected.
Also, I find it strange that EZ-Link, which is formed by LTA, could not continue this service unlike when TransitLink, a joint venture between the private transit operators, provided the service in 2002 without charges and in a much more convenient manner.
Various government agencies and private enterprises have provided incentives to encourage cashless transactions and minimise point-of-sale activities. Two examples readily spring to mind - HDB offering a 2 per cent rebate for Giro payment of season parking; Kopitiam offering a 10 per cent discount to customers who use their contactless card for payment. These organisations are enlightened to the fact that it is a win-win situation - consumers get additional benefits to change their transactional behaviour, which brings about cost savings to the implementing organisations.
I find that EZ-Link is moving in the opposite direction if it thinks that these charges and inconvenient processes will consolidate their customer base before Nets can enable their Cashcard for transit transactions. Without competition in this particular sector, it seems that consumers are at the short end of the stick.
Ng Jit Cheng

 

[johnny333]

When will Sporeans ever learn

Services like NETs, Giro only benefit the GLCs. As consumers why would anyone take up such services & then have to write to complain

Just use cash