Hitting credit card limits at the pump

Skyrocketing gasoline prices has many motorists bumping up against pay-at-the-pump restrictions.

…With skyrocketing gasoline prices, many customers are bumping up against pay-at-the-pump credit card limits — often $75. Rules limiting these transactions are nothing new, but these days it’s increasingly easy to exceed the limit, leaving many customers to face the hassle of dealing with two-transaction purchases.

Back in 2003, when Jeff Urban bought his Hummer, paying $75 to fill up would have been unthinkable. Now, Urban said, his goliath SUV will soon be a three-transaction vehicle.



Customers who pay at the register face no limit. At the pump, the size of credit card purchases is restricted largely to protect stations, which can be charged if there’s a problem with transactions. Purchases at the pump are particularly vulnerable to trouble because no signature is required to verify the user’s identity. And because the credit card is swiped before the gas is pumped, there’s no way to know the size of the purchase when it’s authorized.

Visa, MasterCard and Discover Card generally guarantee that merchants will be paid the first $75 of a pay-at-the-pump transaction. American Express determines its limits based on the contractual relationship with the companies.

Washington Post