Page 7 | Tesco's petrol stations automatically charging £120 per transaction on 'Pay at Pump'

Silverlog · 2023-03-16T03:46:35+00:00

[[https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11864731/Tesco-Pay-Pump-fury-drivers-charged-120-deposit-time-up.html Article here in the Daily Fail]] Charging you and then refunding the difference. Did you know about this? I didn't. I'd be effing furious if this messed up my banking and the refund wasn't instant. The maximum I ever put in the the car is £40. I prefer pay-at-pump because it's usually faster than going in the kiosk. Aibu?

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:21

TaRaDeBumDeAy · 16/03/2023 09:18

Exactly. My mum is low income, she only gets carers allowance, and maybe a bit of income support now. She's on less than 500pm. She needs her car and she now has COPD so can't walk far, despite caring for my sister. But she has to traipse into the shop unnessesarily, in order to keep her own fucking money. That she needs to pay her 339pm DD bill to keep the house warm for my disabled sister and herself. All these little things that others think nothing of, just add to that stone that others have to carry.

Great Britain, indeed.

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Oh come on. Walking to the shop is not far. She must walk further than that to get to her car in the morning!

ClareBlue · 16/03/2023 09:24

ArdeteiMasazxu · 16/03/2023 05:24

this is perfectly normal for any service where something is paid for after it is provided - same thing as with hotels. Part of the responsibility you are supposed to develop as a grownup who uses credit cards is managing your finances so that you are never sailing so close to your credit limit that things like this are a problem.

if you haven't yet achieved that level of adulting, it's easy enough to opt to pay at the till and then you are only charged for what you actually take.

If you knew the difference brween a credit and debit card you might has a tiny bit of credabilty. These are pre authorising debit card transactions not credit cards at credit limits.
But if you think that there aren't loads of adult people who get below 120 available in their financial pay period, then you are so disconnected from the reality you need to refrain from commenting.

TaRaDeBumDeAy · 16/03/2023 09:25

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:21

Oh come on. Walking to the shop is not far. She must walk further than that to get to her car in the morning!

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ODFOD.

She struggles to walk into the shop, stand and wait, and walk back, after pumping petrol too. She's weak now. are you really saying you can't imagine there are people that will will struggle with that? Do you really have no concept that some people are not fit and healthy?

Her drive is outside the front door. A few steps from the door to the car. She had a heart attack last year and now gets out of breath and struggles really easily.

Iluvfriends · 16/03/2023 09:26

ArdeteiMasazxu · 16/03/2023 05:24

this is perfectly normal for any service where something is paid for after it is provided - same thing as with hotels. Part of the responsibility you are supposed to develop as a grownup who uses credit cards is managing your finances so that you are never sailing so close to your credit limit that things like this are a problem.

if you haven't yet achieved that level of adulting, it's easy enough to opt to pay at the till and then you are only charged for what you actually take.

Why don't you get off your high horse and come into the real world.
There are people living day to day, deciding whether to eat or heat and having to count every penny.
I guess you can afford to have money taken from your account to be returned days later, but not everyone can.

amusedbush · 16/03/2023 09:28

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:13

This has literally never happened to me. Ever. I can check my bank account immediately after putting 40 in and it will say 40.

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There was a thread on here a few months ago where the authorisation was held up in the OP's pending charges for days and she needed the money. The supermarket and her bank blamed each other, and I believe the bank only released it because they'd had multiple complaints about the same thing.

There are also loads of tweets and (admittedly low quality) news articles with similar issues.

I haven't personally experienced it either but I'm wary of it, so I pay at the kiosk where I can.

RedToothBrush · 16/03/2023 09:30

ClareBlue · 16/03/2023 09:24

If you knew the difference brween a credit and debit card you might has a tiny bit of credabilty. These are pre authorising debit card transactions not credit cards at credit limits.
But if you think that there aren't loads of adult people who get below 120 available in their financial pay period, then you are so disconnected from the reality you need to refrain from commenting.

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People don't tend to be booking into hotels if they can't afford a £120 authorisation hold on their card for petrol either.

I do love the assumption that it's perfectly everyday normal to be booking hotels on a regular basis.

Polis · 16/03/2023 09:31

She struggles to walk into the shop, stand and wait, and walk back, after pumping petrol too. She's weak now.

Are there any petrol stations in the area with attended service?

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:31

TaRaDeBumDeAy · 16/03/2023 09:25

ODFOD.

She struggles to walk into the shop, stand and wait, and walk back, after pumping petrol too. She's weak now. are you really saying you can't imagine there are people that will will struggle with that? Do you really have no concept that some people are not fit and healthy?

Her drive is outside the front door. A few steps from the door to the car. She had a heart attack last year and now gets out of breath and struggles really easily.

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Then she probably shouldn't be driving at all?

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 16/03/2023 09:33

It goes on as a £120 payment "pending" -- ie a hold (like a hotel would do when you check in). The £120 doesn't actually ever go from your account - it then later takes the amount you actually spent at the pump

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:34

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 16/03/2023 09:33

It goes on as a £120 payment "pending" -- ie a hold (like a hotel would do when you check in). The £120 doesn't actually ever go from your account - it then later takes the amount you actually spent at the pump

Exactly. Unless this has changed in the last week!

Corah5 · 16/03/2023 09:37

It’s standard everywhere now, to prevent thieves stealing fuel they don’t have the money to pay for. People have admitted on this thread that they’ve used this method to steal fuel in the past, so it’s not surprising the garages have put a stop to it.

SlipSlidinAway · 16/03/2023 09:37

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 16/03/2023 09:33

It goes on as a £120 payment "pending" -- ie a hold (like a hotel would do when you check in). The £120 doesn't actually ever go from your account - it then later takes the amount you actually spent at the pump

And yet my son had that amount taken from his account and not returned for a day or two. Others on here have reported the same happening.

PrtScn · 16/03/2023 09:38

I'm just glad that when I was struggling cheques were still a thing. Many a time I'd use a cheque to buy petrol when I was running on empty and had a couple of days left till payday and had no overdraft left (yes I lived in my authorised overdraft a lot back then). Would take about 3 days for a cheque to clear.

If you tried to pay by cheque nowadays the shop assistant would probably look at you blank 😂

ClareBlue · 16/03/2023 09:39

RedToothBrush · 16/03/2023 09:10

The problem is more if you have £140 in your account, and knowing this decide to only put in £20 but the system default remains £120 unless their are insufficient funds.

If the pending charge isn't immediately reversed (and this is the case frequently) you can quickly become unstuck at the next place you try and purchase something.

I guess this is why it's a good idea to fill up AFTER you've done your food shop not before...

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This is exactly the issue. You can spend what you have on petrol but if you have 120 in your account you can not stop the preauthorising of all you available money when you might want to only spend 30 of it on petrol. Hotels have been doing it for years and sometimes preauthorising all peoples holiday spend on their debit card, so they can not get it for their holiday.

TaRaDeBumDeAy · 16/03/2023 09:43

Polis · 16/03/2023 09:31

She struggles to walk into the shop, stand and wait, and walk back, after pumping petrol too. She's weak now.

Are there any petrol stations in the area with attended service?

No

ClareBlue · 16/03/2023 09:45

Zonder · 16/03/2023 08:17

So it just ringfences your money for up to an hour. It doesn't take it out of your account apparently.

Fine if it is actually 60 minutes. I have had it in pending for 3 days. 'sorry for any inconvenience' is sort of admitting it is, well, inconvenient. But for some it is way more than that.

BarbaraofSeville · 16/03/2023 09:48

TaRaDeBumDeAy · 16/03/2023 09:43

No

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I think routine attended service is almost unheard of these days but googling suggests this scheme:

www.motaclarity.co.uk/news/new-fuelservice-app-helps-drivers-with-a-disability-refuel#:~:text=The%20fuelService%20app%20lets%20drivers,pull%20up%20at%20the%20pump.

Something to look into?

ScottishLavender · 16/03/2023 09:51

TimeForMeToF1y · 16/03/2023 07:16

What is the correct;purpose for using a credit card?

In all my decades of having credit cards they've never told me there was a special way to use them. Maybe you could enlighten me

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Just jumping in here.

To use a credit card correctly you make ALL of your regular purchases on it (shopping, fuel, meals out etc) then repay it in FULL every month. You pay no interest on the money you've borrowed and you're covered by section 75 too.

I've attached a link to MSE where section 75 is explained.

Section 75

Doing this means that your money stays in your bank account longer than if you paid up front on a debit card. A debit card should really only be used to take cash from an ATM for those places that don't always take credit cards.

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:53

ScottishLavender · 16/03/2023 09:51

Just jumping in here.

To use a credit card correctly you make ALL of your regular purchases on it (shopping, fuel, meals out etc) then repay it in FULL every month. You pay no interest on the money you've borrowed and you're covered by section 75 too.

I've attached a link to MSE where section 75 is explained.

Section 75

Doing this means that your money stays in your bank account longer than if you paid up front on a debit card. A debit card should really only be used to take cash from an ATM for those places that don't always take credit cards.

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Isn't this only worth it if you earn interest on your current account?

ClareBlue · 16/03/2023 09:53

@PrtScn and Asda used to cash a cheque up to your bank guarantee card limit of usually 50. If you went Friday 5pm it wasn't going through before Monday and you had cash for the weekend. Those were the stressful days of starting off in life in the 90s. We're thankful we will never have to do it now, but plenty have to use the modern equivalent which is a payday loan.
Systems like preauthorising large amounts on debit cards just reinforce financial inequalities. It's really expensive to be poor.

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:55

Section 75 wouldn't apply to 40 quids worth of petrol anyway.

premicrois · 16/03/2023 09:55

A debit card should really only be used to take cash from an ATM for those places that don't always take credit cards.

Says who?

I am perfectly happy using my debit card to make payments.

Salverus · 16/03/2023 09:56

premicrois · 16/03/2023 09:55

A debit card should really only be used to take cash from an ATM for those places that don't always take credit cards.

Says who?

I am perfectly happy using my debit card to make payments.

Yeah me too. Financially literate as well!

Oakbeam · 16/03/2023 09:58

I am perfectly happy using my debit card to make payments.

So am I. I get 1% cashback when I do.

HappiestSleeping · 16/03/2023 10:02

cakeorwine · 16/03/2023 07:46

Or you could do it in 2 goes?

I think a sensible solution would be to do as they do in other countries - such as asking you what you would like to spend up to at the start.

Then it preauthorises that amount.

Or takes that amount - and you spend it. If you don't spend it, you then get a refund.

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Agreed that there are alternatives for the way it operates. It's all evolved though, so is a change on a change on a change. If it were reworked from scratch it would undoubtedly be different now.

Can't do 2 goes as the pre-auth will only work on a single card in a 24 hour period. Could always use 2 cards, but I only have 1 credit card and would never use a debit card in an external machine. Too many years in data security.