After twenty-five years of forced selection, it will be possible to choose which operator to rely on for electronic payment of highway tolls. We compared the services and costs of Telepass, the historical operator (which recently adjusted prices) and those of the new Unipolmove.
Telepass’s twenty-five-year monopoly, the only electronic payment service for motorway tolls, is over. The entry of the insurance company Unipol with the Unipolmove service now allows motorists to choose between several competitors by comparing offers and costs, which until now was only possible for heavy vehicles thanks to the system offered by the German company Dkv. And it happens at the most opportune moment, that is, when Telepass Spa, a company owned by the holding company Atlantia, informs its clients 45% increase of the monthly fee, which went from 1.26 euros to 1.83 euros per month. This is the first increase since its launch in 1997.
Unipolmove: costs and services
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Anyone can subscribe to the Unipolmove service, even those who are not already Unipol customers. It allows you to pay tolls on the highway using the routes already booked for Telepass customers, but can also be used to pay fines, car taxes, LTZ parking, and even refueling. For the first 6 months, the monthly fee is free, you only pay the fee, then the cost is 1 euro per month, at full capacity, so we are talking about a flat cost of 12 euros per year compared to about 22 euros. Unipolmove is also offered in a “pay-as-you-go” version, with an activation cost of €10 but no monthly fee for the months it is not used.
Telepass: costs and services
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The activation of the Telepass service dates back to 1990 on the occasion of the World Cup, first on a trial basis on the stretch north between Calenzano – Sesto Fiorentino and Florence, and then on the A1 motorway. Initially reserved for business customers and limited to one car, in 1997 it was launched in a “family” version and can be used on multiple number plates. Since 2005, it has also been active for two-wheelers, and to date has nearly 7 million customers with services ranging from toll-paying to parking, electric vehicle recharging, refueling, and access to restricted traffic areas. For about twenty-four years, the rent has remained constant, net of the exchange rate of the lira, at 1.26 euros, as of July 2022, taking effect to increase to 1.83 euros per month (+0.57 euros). The rental of the second device, the binary option (including roadside assistance in Italy) ranges from 0.60 to 0.88 euros per month (+0.28 euros).
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