Tata Cars, IndianOil and ToneTag put UPI fuel payments inside the car
Drivers of eligible Tata Cars connected vehicles can settle fuel bills from the dashboard instead of a phone, through ToneTag's internet-of-things take on NPCI's UPI Circle.
- GFF 2026
- 2026-09-11
What Happened
ToneTag has rolled out an in-car fuel payment product for Tata Cars' DrivePay, working with IndianOil and built on an internet-of-things version of NPCI's UPI Circle framework. Drivers of eligible connected vehicles are meant to settle fuel bills straight from the vehicle interface rather than a phone. Forecourt availability across IndianOil outlets is expected within the next few months.
“Pay for fuel without leaving your seat! At #GFF2026, IndianOil and Tata Cars, powered by ToneTag's IoT-enabled UPI CIRCLE, brought in-car payments to life, enabling drivers to pay for fuel and more directly from their vehicle.”
NPCI describes UPI payments through IoT as transactions a user hands off to smart devices or software, so a smartphone is no longer the only way to pay. The idea is to cut the number of friction points a payer faces. Fuelling or EV recharging from a connected car sits on its list of examples, alongside retail purchases made with smart glasses, streaming subscriptions paid through a smart TV and groceries ordered from AI chatbots.
One caveat applies for now: NPCI says payments driven by AI and software over IoT are still running as a pilot with a limited set of users inside a Closed User Group. That limits who can actually use the in-car fuel option today.
Why this matters
The tie-up points to a wider shift in how payments reach drivers: NPCI's framework lets a car itself act as a payment device, which matters to connected-vehicle owners, fuel retailers and the payment firms building these rails. IndianOil forecourts are the first target, but the same approach is already listed for retail buys, streaming subscriptions and EV recharging.
Terms in This Story
- UPI
- A real-time mobile payments system used in India to move money between bank accounts.
- UPI Circle
- A framework that lets a user delegate payment rights to another person or, in this case, to a device or piece of software.
- IoT (Internet of Things)
- Everyday objects and machines fitted with connectivity and software so they can exchange data or carry out tasks.
- Closed User Group
- A restricted set of participants allowed to take part while a service is being tested.
A brief summary; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.