Published 23rd Mar, 2024

By Tola Owoyele

Oluseun Oyelakin, a Lagos State resident, has narrated how Bolt deducted N3,000 from his Fidelity Bank account for a ride he never took.

Oyelakin told FIJ that prior to the deduction of the amount from his bank account, he booked a Bolt ride on December 3, 2023.

“After I ordered the ride via the Bolt app, one of the drivers on the outfit’s platform accepted my request,” Oyelakin told FIJ.

“A few minutes later, however, the same driver suddenly cancelled my request. When I noticed that my request had been cancelled, I tried checking for the driver’s details.

“While I was trying to order for another ride via the same platform, I suddenly received a debit charge of N3,000 from my Fidelity Bank account through the card payment method being used on Bolt app.

“When I examined the debit notification closely, it was for the ride that never happened.”

Oyelakin said he immediately contacted Bolt via its mobile application and through email to demand an explanation for the shocking deduction.

“Bolt then told me that the dubious deduction from my Fidelity Bank account was a pre-authorisation charge that was aimed at verifying the validity of my debit card. They also said the deduction was carried out to know whether my account was sufficiently funded,” Oyelakin said.

“I, however, found the explanation shocking, as it is important to note that the card was not newly added to the Bolt mobile app.

“As a matter of fact, the card had been used for several ride payments. This then means that a pre-authorisation charge should not have been passed on my account at all. That’s even if the explanation I was given by the Bolt official was ever true.

“Bolt further told me that the money would be reversed to my account within 14 business days. The official added that if there was a reversal delay from the card-issuing bank, which was Fidelity Bank, after the stipulated period, I should visit any of the bank’s branches.”

When the reversal period Bolt promised Oyelakin elapsed, he again contacted its officials for an update.

“Bolt then told me that the fund would be released within another 14 to 30 days, depending on the procedure my bank chose to use in reversing my money,” Oyelakin said.

“When I began to feel Bolt was not willing to reverse the money into my account, I visited two Fidelity Bank branches on two different days in December 2023 to lodge complaints on the matter.

“The Fidelity Bank officials then gave me clear-cut responses about the transaction and my complaints, saying the charge was not from their end.

“They made it clear that it shouldn’t have occurred in the first place. They also could not give me any assurance of a reversal from their end, stating that the refund or reversal would have to come from Bolt. They said the only solution would be for Bolt to initiate the refund because the money was already in Bolt’s account.

“Since December 3, 2023, Bolt has refused to refund the money to my account.

“Surprisingly and unfortunately, I saw similar complaints on Bolt’s official X (Twitter) account when I tried to lodge a complaint on their handle.”

FIJ sent an email to Bolt for comments on the matter on Friday morning, but it had not been responded to at press time.

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