Smart card, dumb refund rules

Beijing's public transport system has come under fire for setting barriers to card users who are asking for a refund of unused cash on their smart cards when they leave the city, or for malfunctioning cards.

On Wednesday, a customer service employee from Beijing Municipal Administration and Communications Card Company confirmed that residents can only get a refund at certain designated places, and that it would take seven days to get a refund for a malfunctioning card.

"It's ridiculous that we can pay at any center and get the card in a minute, but when we ask for refund, there are always difficulties," said a resident surnamed Hao from Daxing district, who had to run between four smart card application centers to get a refund on November 1.

A tourist from Xiamen, Fujian Province, whose microblog name is "jiujiuzuzu" posted her complaints online, saying the process of asking for a refund had "almost ruined the trip to Beijing in August."

"Xizhimen center claimed their machine was broken, and there were around 100 people waiting at Beijing Zoo smart card center, and our last hope at Beijing West Railway Station failed us again, even though it should be one of the centers accepting refund requests according to its website," she wrote.

A female employee from Xidan customer service hotline said she could not explain why there are fewer centers dealing with refunds than there are issuing cards.

"A malfunctioning card needs to be sent to a certain office to read the information, which explains why it takes seven days for the refund," she said.

Meanwhile, Wang Yu, a former lawyer who is assisting in a request to the card company for information about what happens to the cash deposits travelers must pay (20 yuan, or $3.2) when they take out a card, said that repeated requests regarding this issue have been ignored, and she has filed a case at Xicheng district court to demand answers from the card company.