PUNE: The State government has taken a cognisance after receiving complaints about vehicle distributors collecting exorbitant amount from customers as 'handling charges'. The government has warned the dealers not to charge extra amount except the registration fees.

The State government has issued a resolution stating that “The vehicle dealers are charging extra amount from customers who are buying two or four-wheelers. The government charges only registration and tax amount for new vehicles and hence, distributors should only charge that and not take any extra amount.”

"The documents submitted by distributors will be verified by the Regional Transport Office (RTO). After verification by RTO, the registration number will be issued. For new vehicle registration, the government will issue updates about time to time fee structure at VAHAN 4.0," the GR stated.

According to the sources from RTO, “There have been multiple cases where dealers charge anything from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000, depending on the car, under the guise of handling charges. The dealers are charging these fees by telling that this extra money is paid to RTO for speedy clearance of the vehicles."

“We will take action if we receive any complaint regarding the handling charges. A customer has to be aware of this while purchasing the vehicle and should ask for the receipt. If the dealer is charging any amount for registration, tax, or other charges, the dealer should justify the amount. For example, if the registration fee is Rs 300 and Rs 3,000 is the tax, the customer should get these receipts. If dealers are charging more than this, they (customers) should ask for a receipt. The documents come to us for verification. If we find any irregularity, we will file a case against the dealer,” said Babasaheb Ajri, RTO, Pune.