Alarm raised over Beitbridge border card deductions

CROSS-BORDER funeral parlour drivers have raised concerns over alleged unexplained deductions from their bank accounts after making payments at Beitbridge Border Post, with some claiming they were charged several times more than the amounts they authorised.

The complaints have prompted Zimborders Consortium, the company managing the border post, to investigate the disputed transactions.

One driver from a Bulawayo-based funeral parlour said he paid R800 using a South African bank card at the border but was later notified that R3 000 had been deducted from his account.

"I swiped using a card from a South African bank and amount of 800 rand but a few days later I received a message on my mobile phone indicating that I had withdrawn 3 000 rand," he said.

"I contacted Zimborders Consortium for redress but they only said they will look into the issue."

Another driver, Mqondisi Sibanda, said his account was debited R4 300 despite him authorising a payment of R800 at the border.

"I think there could be some form of fraud, my bank said they have nothing to do with the transaction. Up to now my account has not been credited," Sibanda said.

Several other drivers reportedly raised similar complaints, with some considering legal action to recover the disputed amounts.

Zimborders Consortium, however, denied any fraudulent or dishonest conduct, attributing the discrepancies to processing delays involving its third-party bank and payment platform.

Zimborders general manager Nqobile Ncube said the amount displayed on the payment terminal was the amount authorised and processed by the customer.

"Card payments at the border are handled through a third-party bank and payment platform. The transaction amount is displayed to the customer on the terminal for authorisation, and that is the amount processed," Ncube said.

"We wish to state unequivocally that there is no fraudulent or dishonest conduct in the processing of these payments."

Ncube confirmed that the company had received several complaints and was treating them seriously.

He said investigations had identified processing delays that could result in legitimate transactions from separate border crossings appearing on customers' bank statements at around the same time.

According to Zimborders, the timing of the transactions could give customers the impression that they had been charged twice or that an incorrect amount had been deducted.

"We have identified processing delays that can cause legitimate transactions from separate crossings to appear on customers' bank statements at or around the same time, creating the impression of duplicate deductions," Ncube said.

"We understand why this causes concern."

He said the company's investigations, including reviews of supporting documentation supplied by affected customers, had so far established that the transactions were separate and legitimate.

"Our investigations to date, including review of supporting documentation provided by customers, have consistently identified separate, legitimate transactions affected by these processing delays, rather than duplicate or incorrect charges, and none of the customers involved was found to be due a refund," he said.

The conflicting accounts have left some cross-border drivers seeking clarity from both Zimborders and their banks, particularly where the amounts appearing on their statements differ significantly from the payments they recall authorising.

For the affected drivers, the issue remains unresolved until they can reconcile the disputed deductions with the underlying border transactions.