It was previously reported that a couple of Malaysians were allegedly wrongly charged an “outstanding fee” of $2,700 when leaving Singapore.
One of the Malaysians, 26-year-old Bah Wei Jun, subsequently took to Instagram to shed light on his ordeal, where he was recorded as having stayed in Singapore for 4 months, when he had only been in Singapore for a few hours.
Following the incident, the Singapore Land Transport Authority is currently investigating the claim, and they said that they had received an appeal from the parties involved and will inform him of the outcome upon the conclusion of their investigations, according to TODAY.
The Alleged Incident
On December 10, Mr. Bah and his friend, both driving a Malaysian-registered car, encountered unexpected complications at Tuas Checkpoint.
According to Mr. Bah, their Autopass card, a requirement for all Malaysia-registered vehicles entering Singapore, had recorded an outstanding fee of S$2,700.
Mr. Bah explained in his Instagram post that, according to LTA’s system, their car had not left Singapore for four months, despite their brief visit. The alleged system error led to the substantial outstanding fee.
Mr. Bah’s Appeal and LTA’s Response
LTA acknowledged Mr. Bah’s appeal and assured him that they would inform him of the investigation’s outcome once concluded. The authority is actively investigating the circumstances surrounding the disputed charges.
Mr. Bah claimed that he attempted to resolve the issue by urging LTA to cross-verify with the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) to confirm their departure from Singapore. However, he alleged that LTA and ICA operate with separate databases, complicating efforts to reconcile the discrepancies.
LTA’s Position and Motorist Advisory
Mr. Bah contended that he could prove his departure through his passport but faced challenges demonstrating the same for his car. He argued that the LTA officer deemed the passport proof of individual departure but insufficient to establish the vehicle’s exit.
After a two-hour dispute with authorities, Mr. Bah and his companion were reportedly warned that their car would be confiscated if the outstanding fees were not paid. Faced with this ultimatum, they opted to pay the charges.
LTA advised motorists intending to keep or use foreign-registered vehicles in Singapore to review the requirements for vehicle entry on their website.