A HUGE change at supermarket petrol stations means customers are to be hit with new rules for buying pay-at-the-pump fuel.
Some stations will now require a £100 pre-authorisation fee before motorists can fill up as part of the shake-up.
New rules are being introduced at many petrol stations[/caption]
Supermarkets are looking modernise fuel payment operations[/caption]
Conversions began at Asda sites in December[/caption]
Conversions to drive-thru payment kiosks began at Asda‘s 82 superstores in December, with station staff being shifted in-store.
Similar changes are also expected at Sainsbury’s and Tesco branches.
Sainsbury’s Pay@Pump self-service pumps will now request a £100 pre-authorisation amount before customers can fill up their motors.
This is to ensure customers have the sufficient funds to cover the fuel dispensed, as per new industry requirements mandated by Visa and Mastercard.
Morrisons, meanwhile, sold its forecourts business to specialist operator Motor Fuel Group (MFG) in April in a deal worth £2.5 billion as it looks to reduce its debts.
It encompasses 337 of the supermarket’s petrol stations and 400 associated car parks.
However, the supermarket – which took a 20% stake in MFG and agreed commercial and supply deals – has confirmed it has no plans for stations to be made fully cashless, reports Birmingham Live.
The chain stated: “While the company may elect to apply up to £1bn proceeds towards reinvestment, it intends to explore if there are efficient opportunities to apply proceeds to debt reduction.”
Tesco customers can fill up with a maximum of £120 of fuel using Pay at Pump, and there’s no maximum spend.
The supermarket’s sites accept all contactless payment for sales up to £100 in kiosks but contactless isn’t accepted at the pumps.
A statement said: “We accept all UK-registered chip and pin cards at our Pay at Pump stations, except for Visa Electron.
“We accept the following fuel cards at our kiosks: fuelGenie, UK Fuels, Keyfuels (purple card only), Allstar.”
It added: “If your account balance is under £120, your card issuer should respond with the lower amount they’ll allow, and the fuel pump screen will show the value you can fill up to.
“Some card issuers might not allow partial authorisations below £120. If this happens, please try another payment card.”
An Asda spokesperson said: “As more than 90 per cent of all payments on our Superstore forecourts are made via card or a contactless device, the colleagues who worked on these sites are moving into the store so they can better serve our customers.
“These conversions began in December and we expect to complete the changeover later in 2024.”
The Sun has approached Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s for comment.
