The use of a Card as a Ticket and for payment of Fares for travel in the Public Transport System shall be subject to the Issuer's terms and conditions as may from time to time be applicable to the use of the Card ("Issuer's Terms"), these Conditions, and all applicable laws and regulations Provided Always that these Conditions shall prevail over the Issuer's Terms in the event of any conflict or inconsistency. By using a Card as a Ticket and for payment of Fares for travel in the Public Transport System, the Card Holder agrees to be and shall be bound by these Conditions.
1. Definitions
In these Conditions, the following words and expressions shall, unless otherwise provided or the context otherwise requires, have the following meaning:
| Act | means the Public Transport Council Act (Cap.259B) as amended from time to time. |
| Card | means any contactless multiple purpose Stored Value Card and includes by definition any form factor accepted by the Operators and TLPL for use in the Public Transport System. |
| Card Holder | means a person who holds and uses a Card issued by the Issuer and which is accepted by TLPL and/or the Operators for use as a Ticket and as a means of fare payment in the Public Transport System. |
| Fares | means the amount payable to the Operators for Transit Services. |
| Autoload | means a system of electronic transfer in which funds are transferred from a bank account of a depositor to an organisation or organisations designated by the depositor. |
| Issuer | means the party (or parties) who issue(s) the Card for use as a Ticket and as a means of payment for Transit Services in the Public Transport System. |
| LTA | means the Land Transport Authority of Singapore, a body corporate established under the Land Transport Authority of Singapore Act (Cap 158A). |
| Operators | means SBS Transit Ltd, SMRT Trains Ltd, SMRT Buses Ltd, SMRT Light Rail Pte Ltd, Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd, Go-Ahead Singapore and such other persons as may be specified by TLPL from time to time. |
| PTC | means the Public Transport Council of Singapore, as established under the Act. |
| Public Transport System | means the public bus and rail systems from time to time operated by the Operators. |
| Rail | means the Mass Rapid Transit and Light Rapid Transit Systems. |
| Stored Value | means the monetary value paid in advance for and stored in a Card, including by means of a revaluation, or the residual value remaining therein from time to time, which may be used by a Card Holder for the payment of Transit Services. |
| Ticket | means a Card which is issued as a form of authorisation for the conveyance of any passenger on the Public Transport System, as understood within the context and meaning of the Act. |
| TLPL | means Transit Link Pte Ltd, its successors and assigns and such other persons as may be authorised by LTA from time to time. |
| Fare System | means the computerised system operated and managed by TransitLink and/or Operators whereby, inter alia, payment of Fares in the Public Transport System may be effected through the use of any Card (including the top-up and refund functions applicable to such Cards). |
| Transit Services | means the services from time to time provided by the Operators for or in connection with the transportation of passengers on the Public Transport System. |
| Transit Usage Device | means any public transport fare payment device forming part of the Fare System which is used to effect the payment of Fares. |
2. Payment for Transit Services
2.1 A Card Holder shall exercise due care and diligence when presenting his/her Card onto any Transit Usage Device so as to enable the proper deduction of Fares. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, a Card Holder shall:
- not attach onto his/her Card any object which may interfere with the read/write mechanism of any Transit Usage Device; and
- ensure that his/her Card has sufficient value before presenting it for Fare payment.
2.2 A Card Holder shall show his/her Card to any authorised personnel of TLPL and/or the Operators upon demand whenever the same is presented for the purposes of Fare payment.
2.3 Subject to the Act, each Operator is at liberty to determine the Fares (including any concessionary Fares) payable and the manner in which such Fares are payable. The Card Holder agrees to the deduction from the Stored Value of his/her Card of such Fares as are due to the Operators when using the Public Transport System.
2.4 For travel by Rail, a Card Holder shall comply with the conditions on fares and tickets as stated under the Rapid Transit System Regulations.
3. Rejection of Card
3.1 TLPL and/or the Operators shall be entitled to reject the use of a Card as a Ticket and as a means of Fare payment in the Public Transport System if:
- the Card has expired;
- the Stored Value of the Card is insufficient or has been exhausted;
- the Card is suspected by TransitLink and/or the Operators:
- to be a counterfeit;
- to have been fraudulently or illegally issued or revalued;
- to have been stolen or tampered with in any way; or
- to have been used by a person to whom it was not issued or who is otherwise not entitled to the use thereof;
- the Card is damaged, corrupted, defective, faulty or otherwise poses a risk of damage to the Fare System (including any Transit Usage Device);
- the Card has been blacklisted by the Issuer or has been made the subject of any recall or retention by the Issuer;
- the Card has not been activated for use in the Public Transport System; or
- the Card is not capable or has ceased to be capable of functioning as a Ticket and as a means for the payment of Fares in the Public Transport System for any other reason whatsoever.
3.2 In the event that a Card is rejected, the Card Holder shall pay any unpaid Fare in cash or with the use of a valid Card. The Card Holder shall be entitled to refund of any excess Fares provided always that the rejection of the card is not through the Card Holder's fault and the Card Holder can present relevant proofs for such rebate claims within five days as set forth in Clause 6.
4. Retention of Card
4.1 TLPL and/or the Operators and/or any person authorised by TLPL and/or the Operators shall be entitled, at its/his discretion which shall be final and binding, to seize and/or retain any Card which is rejected pursuant to Clause 3.1 except where the Card is rejected pursuant to Clause 3.1 (a), (b), (f) and (g).
4.2 A Card Holder shall surrender his/her Card to TLPL or the Operators upon demand and shall, in connection thereto, provide TLPL and/or the Operators with his/her name, NRIC or other identification number, address and contact number, in return for which the Card Holder shall be issued with a receipt or an acknowledgement form for the retained Card ("Retention Receipt"), and shall, where duly requested to do so, provide his/her fullest cooperation in connection with the investigations which may be carried out by TLPL and/or the Operators in relation to such retained Card.
4.3 In the event that a Card is retained, the Card Holder shall pay any unpaid Fare in cash or with the use of a valid card. The Card Holder shall be entitled to refund of any excess Fares Provided Always that the retention of the card is not through the Card Holder's fault and the Card Holder can present relevant proofs for such rebate claims within five days as set forth in Clause 6.
4.4 Card Holders can call the SimplyGo Hotline after five working days to check on the status of a retained Card by quoting the Retention Receipt number. No query or claim made in respect of any retained Card shall be entertained in the event that the Card Holder is unable to produce a Retention Receipt or a Retention Receipt number.
4.5 TLPL and/or the Operators shall not be obliged to return a retained Card and may retain it permanently if, further to its or their investigations, the Card is determined by TransitLink and/or the Operators whose determination shall be final and binding:
- to be a counterfeit;
- to have been fraudulently or illegally issued or revalued;
- to have been stolen or tampered with in any way;
- to have been used by a person to whom it was not issued or who is otherwise not entitled to the use thereof;
- to pose a risk of damage to any Fare System (including any Transit Usage Device);
- to have been blacklisted by the Issuer; or
- to have been made the subject of any recall or retention by the Issuer.
4.6 Any and all claims by a Card Holder in respect of a retained Card (including, without limitation, the refund of any Stored Value, the return of any retained Card and/or for compensation) must be made within a period of three months commencing from the date on which the Card was retained, failing which the Card Holder shall be deemed to have waived his right to claim and shall not be entitled to any payment whatsoever in respect thereof or to the return of the retained Card. LTA, TLPL and the Operators shall be under no further obligation to entertain any such claim and the Card shall be deemed lost and/or abandoned.
4.7 For the avoidance of doubt, nothing herein shall be construed as to relieve or release the Card Holder in any way of his/her liability under law (including, without limitation, the payment of any penalty fee, as may from time to time be prescribed by the Public Transport Council).
5. Refunds and Replacement of Cards
5.1 A Card Holder may only claim a refund of the Stored Value of a Card which has been retained pursuant to clause 4.1 where such Stored Value is rightfully due to the Card Holder Provided Always that such refunds shall, in the case of any Card operating under a Autoload scheme, be managed by the scheme provider or otherwise in accordance with the Issuer's Terms and/or refund policies for the time being in force.
6. Customer Claims
6.1 A Card Holder may claim a refund from TLPL of any excess fare ("Excess Fare") which may have been deducted from a Card (including in circumstances where an expected reduction of fares was not given although the Transit Conditions for a concession or reduction (as the case may be) have been met), provided that such claim is made within five days of the incident.
7. Exclusion/Limitation of Liability
7.1 Neither the Issuer, LTA, TLPL nor any Operator (or any of their respective officers, employees or agents) shall be liable for any losses, damages, expenses, claims, liability and costs (including cost on a solicitor and client basis) that a Card Holder may incur or suffer in connection with:
- the use of any Card as a Ticket and/or as a means of Fare Payment in the Public Transport System;
- any delay in the issuance of any Card or in the case of any retained Card, the return of such Card;
- the retention, suspension, discontinuance or revocation of any Card;
- any breakdown or fault in the Fare System; or
- any damaged, corrupted, defective, faulty Card.
7.2 Without prejudice to Clause 7.1 above, should any liability be attributed to the Issuer, LTA, TLPL and/or any Operator in connection with the use of any Card as a Ticket and/or as a means of Fare payment in the Public Transport System whatsoever, including but not limited to any event or incident arising from any negligence, the Issuer's, LTA's, TLPL's and such Operator's total liability to the Card Holder under these Conditions and at law shall not exceed in aggregate the sum of $500.
8. Amendment
TLPL may from time to time amend, modify or vary any part of these Conditions without any prior notice to Card Holders save that notice of any such amendments made shall be posted at any SimplyGo Ticketing Service Centre/Ticket Office at MRT stations and bus interchanges and/or such other premises (including SimplyGo website) as may be determined by TLPL. The Card Holder's continued use of the Card after the date of such notification shall constitute an affirmative acknowledgement by the Card Holder of the amendments and shall be deemed to be the Card Holder's acceptance of the revised Conditions.
9. No Waiver
No failure or delay on the part of TLPL or any Operator in exercising any power, right, or remedy under these Conditions shall operate as a waiver of such power, right, or remedy. Nor shall any single or partial exercise of any power, right, or remedy preclude the further or other exercise thereof, or the exercise of any power, right, or remedy that it may have.
10. Right of Third Parties
Any person or entity which is identified or referred to in these Conditions (whether as a class of persons or otherwise) shall be deemed to be a party to these Conditions and shall accordingly be entitled to the benefit of, and to enforce in its own right, any provision of these Conditions which may be relevant to it or them to the fullest extent permitted by law. Save as aforesaid, the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act shall not apply to give any person or entity who is not a party to these Conditions any right to enforce any term of these Conditions. For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this Clause shall affect the rights of any permitted assignee or transferee of these Conditions.
11. Force Majeure
Neither TLPL nor any of the Operators shall be liable for any non-performance, error, interruption or delay in the performance of its or their obligations under these Conditions if the same is due, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly to an event or failure which is beyond its or their reasonable control including, without limitation:
- flood, lightning, acts of God, exceptional weather conditions, floods, droughts, storms, high winds, typhoons, fire, earthquakes and other natural disasters;
- impacts with or by air crafts or aerial objects, terrorism (whether actual or threatened), explosions, wars, warlike operations, hostilities, insurgencies, invasions, epidemics, quarantines, acts of foreign or public enemies, hijacking or unlawful seizure or wrongful exercise of control of vehicles, curtailment of transportation facilities, civil commotion, riots, strikes or lock-outs on a city or industrial scale, industrial disputes, industrial actions by workmen, shortage of labour, goods and materials;
- judgments, legislation, acts, orders, directives, policies, restrictions, regulations, bye-laws, prohibitions or measures of any kind on the part of any court, governmental, parliamentary and/or regulatory authority imposed or to be imposed after the fact;
- power & telecommunication network failures;
- circumstances where communications lines and/or computer systems cannot be used for reasons attributable to any telecommunications carriers; and
- acts or omissions of any third party.
12. Indemnity
The Card Holder hereby undertakes to indemnify and keep TLPL, LTA and each of the Operators harmless from and against any and all actions, proceedings, claims, liabilities (including statutory liability), penalties, demands, costs (including without limitation, legal costs on a solicitor and own client basis), awards, damages, losses and/or expenses however arising as may be directly or indirectly suffered or incurred by TransitLink and/or the Operators by reason of and/or as a result of any breach or non-compliance by the Card Holder of these Conditions.
13. Governing Law
The construction, validity and performance of these Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Singapore.