Unpaid Toll Text Scam: How to Tell If It Is Real (2026)

What the text usually says

The toll version claims you have an outstanding balance on a road toll, often a few dollars. It warns of a late fee if you do not pay today and gives a link to settle the balance. The delivery version says a parcel could not be delivered, an address is incomplete, or a small redelivery fee is due. Either way, the message has one job: get you to a page that looks official and ask for your card.

The scheme is old. The scale is not. In April 2024 the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reported more than 2,000 complaints from at least three states about fake toll texts since early March, and said the campaign appeared to be spreading from state to state. The messages, it said, used almost the same wording, and the sending numbers changed between states.

Texts matter more than most people assume. According to the Federal Trade Commission’s 2025 testimony to Congress, receiving a text message was the top reported contact method in fraud reports for 2025, among reports where consumers named one. Social media led on dollars lost, at over $2 billion. Consumers reported $15.9 billion in total fraud losses that year, and the FTC notes this is only a fraction of the real figure because many victims never report.

Six signs the text is fake

One sign alone is not proof. Two or three together is a good reason to close the message.

• You have no matching account or order. Ask yourself two questions: do I drive on toll roads with a tag or plate account, and am I waiting on a package? If the answer is no, the message is almost certainly bulk spam. If the answer is yes, the message still needs checking, but it is not proof of anything.
• A small amount and a threat of a late fee. The FBI’s April 2024 alert quoted a text claiming a $12.51 toll balance and a $50 late fee. A small debt makes people want to clear it quickly. Real agencies usually send bills by mail or show them in your online account.
• A link to a payment page, with a web address that only imitates the real one. The FBI said the links in toll texts imitate the name of the state toll service. Do not judge by the name in the link. Open the toll operator’s site yourself by typing the address you already know.
• A delivery notice with a link, from an ordinary phone number. The US Postal Inspection Service says USPS does not send unsolicited texts or emails, and that its tracking messages will not contain a link. Treat any “address problem”, “delivery failure”, or “redelivery fee” text with a link as fake until you check the carrier’s own site.
• A request for card details, a login, or a code. A toll or parcel text that sends you to a form asking for your full card number, security code, or a verification code is built to collect them. Stop at that point, even if the page looks right.
• Urgency with a deadline. “Pay within 24 hours” and “final notice” language is meant to rush you past your own checks. A real unpaid balance does not vanish if you take ten minutes to look it up properly.

Checking a toll text

Do not use the link or the phone number in the message. Instead, go to the toll operator’s website by typing the address, or open its app, and look at your account. The FBI’s own advice is to check your account on the legitimate toll service’s website or call the customer service number listed there. If you have never used that toll road, or you have no account in that state, you have your answer.

E-ZPass is one of the names these messages have borrowed. According to news reports, the E-ZPass group has told customers to delete such texts and not to click links in them. That is a useful reminder that a trusted brand name in a text proves nothing. Scammers pick the biggest brands because the most people will recognise them.

Checking a delivery text

Start with whether you are expecting something. If you are, find the tracking number in your order confirmation and enter it on the carrier’s own website. If you are not, there is nothing to check.

The US Postal Inspection Service says USPS only sends text or email tracking updates after you have asked for them with a tracking number, and that those updates do not contain a link. It also says a message claiming a USPS delivery problem is designed to steal personal information. In the UK, fake Royal Mail “parcel waiting” texts that ask for a small fee follow the same pattern. Royal Mail publishes examples of these texts on its website, so check royalmail.com for its current guidance.

The same rule applies to UPS, FedEx, DHL, and every other carrier. Do not judge a text by its style or logo. Use the carrier’s website, typed in by you, and your order email.

The same text in different costumes

Once you know the pattern, the variations are easy to read. The bait changes. The ask does not.

• Unpaid toll: a small balance and a late fee, with a link to settle it.
• Missed delivery or address problem: a parcel is on hold until you confirm details or pay a small fee.
• Redelivery or customs fee: a charge of a few dollars or pounds, so small that checking it feels like more effort than paying.
• Account or subscription problem: the same link, with a bank, streaming service, or government agency name on it.

The FTC’s phishing guidance lists the same family of lures: claims of suspicious activity, account or payment problems, requests to confirm personal or financial information, and unfamiliar invoices. It adds that legitimate companies will not email or text a link to update your payment information. That single rule covers most of the texts in this guide.

The cost per victim is often small at first. The harm comes after: a card number and billing address entered on a fake page can be used for larger purchases, or the details are used to make a later phone call sound credible. This is why the amount in the text is not a reason to relax.

Cut down on the texts you receive

You cannot stop all of them, but you can make each report count. Forward the message to 7726 before you delete it. The Postal Inspection Service also lists 611, your mobile carrier’s customer service line, as a place to ask for help blocking unwanted texts. Do not reply to the sender, even to say stop.

If an older relative or a friend receives these texts, give them the one rule that works: a real toll operator, bank, or carrier will still be there if you check on its official website first. Nothing is lost by waiting ten minutes. For a wider look at calls and messages that push you to pay quickly, see urgent payment requests.

If you tapped the link or paid

1. Stop. Close the page. Do not enter anything more, and do not call a number shown on it.
2. Call your card issuer using the number on the back of your card. Ask it to cancel the card and review recent charges. The FTC says federal law protects you from unauthorised credit and debit card use, and that you should act quickly.
3. Change passwords for any account whose details you entered, going to the real site directly. Turn on two-step verification.
4. Watch for follow-up contact. Someone who has your phone number and card may call posing as your bank. Hang up and call the number on your card. See urgent payment requests.
5. Report it (see below), then delete the text.

If you gave out a Social Security number, a date of birth, or a driving licence number as well, follow the steps in what to do after your data is exposed, including a credit freeze.

Where to report

• 7726 (SPAM): forward the text. This lets your mobile carrier block the number.
• FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• FBI IC3: ic3.gov. Include the sending number and the website listed in the text.
• USPS lookalike texts: email spam@uspis.gov with a screenshot showing the sender’s number and the date.

Official sources

• FBI IC3 public service announcement on toll smishing (April 2024)
• US Postal Inspection Service: Smishing and package tracking text scams
• FTC: How to recognize and avoid phishing scams
• FTC testimony: The rising scam economy (2025 data)

Scambaba is an independent educational project. Reporting channels depend on where you live. How these guides are researched is on the editorial policy.

Frequently asked questions