Just be Aware

A member of our Association thought this would be worthwhile sharing this with you all in case it is something you may come across.

The member stopped at a Self Service Station to fill up with fuel at the weekend.  The member had never used one of these stations before so was a bit cautious. 

She filled up with petrol and paid by credit card and went on home enjoying the new experience.

On checking her credit card that night, she found not only had the petrol had been charged but there was a further amount of $150.00 at the same station.  She immediately thought she  had left her card behind  and someone else had used it.    

On Monday, she contacted her Bank and they advised that some of these self-service stations are now adding a holding charge on top of the petrol charge until that initial amount is cleared and then the holding charge is then dropped.  The Bank also highlighted a problem that may occur if you use a regular Eftpos or Debit card with a small amount in it – that the holding amount prevents you being able to use your card again until it is all cleared. 

This was all news to our member but she thought you should all be aware of it.

Another member wrote which now really asks who is making money out of you..

It is not the Service Station, have a read of the terms and conditions from your bank, the ASB visa and I supose the rest of them have been doing this for sometime, it shows as “Pending” (the $150 is held like a deposit even if the account is in credit) and until the funds are in the account and it is cleared (usually within a day or so) , it shows in a different font.  Once again its all in the fine print and the conditions.  I had the same query and this turned out to be the answer.