pay at the pump

[Seeker]

I've never used PATP in the UK, the petrol station I normally use doesn't offer it. I thought I'd switch to a station that does but I was reading that they now pre-authorise your card for £99, is that correct?

[DJ123]

I can only speak for a Tesco & Morrisons, and they're not £99. it shows a pending transaction of £1 (essentially, are there funds in the account) and then clears with the amount owed a few days later.
IIRC it was Asda fuel stations which did that.

[Chris_SVS]

They pre-auth then refund, only taking the fuel cost. How many people know the exact amount they need unless you're taking jerry cans

[embee]

I'm not exactly sure how the UK works, but in France it works this way.
It is a criminal offence to not pay for something or to bounce a cheque for example, so when you do a pay-at-pump transaction the payment HAS to be ensured. This works two ways.

If you use a DEBIT card it is effectively the same as writing a personal cheque, so they "ring-fence" the maximum amount you could possibly spend (often Eu120 or something). When you complete the transaction those funds in your bank account are ear-marked to pay the potential bill, but your actual spend gets processed and the amounts get amended, but this can take some time to complete, maybe a couple of days. In the meantime your account available balance is reduced by the maximum amount. If you use a DEBIT card repeatedly you can easily end up with no available balance.

If you use a CREDIT card, the transaction is between the retailer and the card provider, and they work on the basis that the card provider will always pay the amount due so it only adds the actual amount to your account. It's then your business to settle up with the credit card provider as usual, the retailer has already been assured of payment from the card provider.

Always use a CREDIT card whenever possible, and NOT a DEBIT card.

[daktulos]

From my experience, they take £1 and it gets changed to the real amount later. Whether they pre-authorise the full amount or not, I don't know, but I assume they do.

There used to be a problem where people would go round with pre-paid cards with £100 on them and would steal gallons of petrol, so it's understandable.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/20...t-away-with-it

I really like pay-at-the-pump, no need to take the helmet off and quicker than queueing. Out of interest, do people get off their bikes to refuel? I don't, but some do ...

[Adam Ef]

The Shell app system I used asks you to put a cap on the amount you want each fill up on the app, say £20 and it takes that amount and leaves the unused bit as credit in your app account. It never let me actually fill up to £20 either, always stopping a pound or so below, which was annoying. Not sure if they changed the system, but I only used it a couple of times because of that. You're not meant to use the app / phone unless you're inside a vehicle too and some stations it does require the person in the station to activate the pump, which they will refuse to do if they realise you're not inside a vehicle.

[daktulos]

I've only used the Sainsbury's ones, which are pretty straight-forward. Card in, PIN, card out, fill up & go.

[Sir Trev]

I used a Gulf pay at pump in Warwickshire recently and it asked for a max amount, which none of the supermarket systems have done to me so far.

Ironically I went to use a Morrisons PAP mid afternoon today as I needed to fill my car and a jerry can for the lawn mower (really quiet roads and a remarkably empty forecourt) so I could keep my distance from the unwashed. Of course the pump I pulled up at said pay in kiosk only...

[DarrenSV650S]

Coronavirus being spread ‘rapidly via petrol pumps’ as nurses warn: Use gloves

[Red Herring]

If you're using PAP to avoid Covid-19 I'm not convinced it's any safer than going to the desk.

When I fill up I keep my gloves on, fill the tank then walk inside and once inside the store I'll remove one glove and retrieve my card from my pocket/wallet, and pay contactless. Return card to pocket/wallet, glove back on, back to bike and ride away. I don't kiss the girl behind the desk, or have any contact with anyone or anything. I regard the outside of my gloves as "dirty" so I try and avoid touching them with my hands and as soon as I return home they are left in the garage with the bike where I wash my hands before entering the house.

To do PAP you invariably have to remove a glove to both put your card into the slot and to punch in your PIN. When you retrieve your card you are again gloveless. Both the contact your card has had with the reader, and you touching the keypad, have the potential to transfer Covid-19. You then put your glove back on which transfers any infection to the inside of your glove, so you now have to wash your hands every time you remove your glove before eating anything or even touching your face.......