AZE.US
Passengers in Baku are raising fresh complaints about bank card and smartphone payments in public transport, saying charges for metro and bus rides sometimes appear hours after the trip – and in some cases late at night.
Some residents say they see several transport-related deductions in a row in their banking apps, even when they are no longer using public transport. Others say a single ride paid by phone can later be followed by a second or third charge, creating the impression that money has been withdrawn for trips they did not take.
The issue has drawn attention on social media, where users have shared screenshots and complaints about payments marked as metro or bus fares. In several cases, passengers said the deductions appeared after they had already left the vehicle or returned home.
Banks say the technical handling of such payments is not controlled by them. According to explanations given to passengers, banks process only the payment information they receive from the transport payment system.
Bakıkart says the situation is linked to delayed authorization. Payments made by bank card or smartphone in public transport operate through NFC technology and may not always be processed immediately. Some trips are recorded offline and charged later, once the data is synchronized with the banking system.
According to the company, the deducted amounts relate to rides that were actually taken earlier. Bakıkart says there is no unjustified or additional withdrawal, but the delay can make passengers think they are being charged while they are not using transport.
Specialists also warn that double payment can occur when a passenger uses a QR code while contactless payment remains active on the phone. If the phone is brought close to the validator, the device may register an NFC payment as well.
A similar problem can happen with bank cards or smartphones when the validator does not react immediately. If the passenger moves the card or phone away and then taps it again, the system may treat the second tap as another payment.
Passengers are advised to turn off NFC when paying by QR code and to avoid tapping a card or phone several times in a row. In cases where a charge clearly does not match an actual trip, users are advised to contact official monitoring centers or the payment system’s support service.
Bakıkart says work is planned to speed up synchronization between banking and transport systems. For now, the main concern for many passengers is not only the deduction itself, but the lack of clarity: when several payments appear at night, it becomes difficult to understand which ride each charge belongs to.
AZE.US