Dart Charge, the system responsible for payments over the Dartford Crossing, has announced an extension of the deadline date for re-validating cards and making payments after experiencing technical difficulties on its website.
Over the past few days, many customers faced difficulties accessing the site following a maintenance period, preventing them from making payments for their journeys over the Dartford Crossing. As the payment deadline approached, drivers became concerned about potential fines.
In response to the inconvenience caused by ongoing website issues, National Highways, the organization responsible for the upkeep of the crossing, issued an apology to affected customers.
Dart Charge has since released a statement acknowledging the problems and reassuring customers that improvements have been implemented to address the technical issues. While some delays may still occur, the average wait time for online transactions on the website is now less than five minutes.
To accommodate those affected by the website downtime, Dart Charge has extended payment deadlines. Account holders now have until August 31 to update their card details on the Dart Charge website. Non-account holders who used the crossing between July 27 and August 14 have until August 15 to pay the charge.
Account holders, including Pay as You Go customers, must revalidate their cards to ensure their crossings are automatically paid and to avoid penalties. Initially, Highways set a deadline of July 28 for card revalidation.
Dart Charge attributed the service disruption to essential system updates aimed at enhancing the Dart Charge system. The responsibility for vehicle identification, payment processing, and account management is being transferred to a new service provider named Conduent. Emovis will continue to handle inquiries for Penalty Charge Notices.
A spokesperson for Dart Charge said in a statement: “The websites and customer contact centres are all operating. We apologize 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 5 minutes. We have further extended payment deadlines to ensure everyone has sufficient time to pay the charge. Dart Charge account holders have until 31 August to update their card details on the website. Non-account holders who use the crossing between 27 July and 14 August have until 15 August to pay the charge.”
“We apologize again for the inconvenience, which was due to essential system updates.”
Dart Charge and National Highways express gratitude for the understanding of road users during this period and emphasize that the maintenance work is vital to enhancing the Dart Charge system.
