[Gordon @ Convergent AV]

Had to go get petrol a second ago as I am leaving early tomorrow and didn't want to waste time. Went for a drive around where my hotel is to find a petrol station....found a BP one in a neighborhood I though looked sort of rough. Got out and it wouldn't dispense fuel.....

Then I noticed the signs: Please pay first.......

Is this common anywhere else? Ive never had this before. I had to go and either give a £100 cash deposit or leave my credit card with them before filling the tank!

Wild!

Becoming increasingly common I am afraid. They have the best sytem in the US where you run your card at the pump itself to get petrol, I think this is happening here now in some places.

[shahedz]

i know a lot of stations do it at night, but didnt know some did during the day, out of curiosity Gordon where are you?

[Gordon @ Convergent AV]

Near Knowlesly beside Liverpool. Going to Isle of Man tomorrow to see a couple of forum members.

G

[JohnG]

There's a couple of petrol stations near me where you have to pay first after a certain time. The local Co-Op supermarket also has empty display boxes for the special Malt Whiskeys, you have to pay for the empty box at the checkout and then get the bottle from the customer help desk

The other method they use in the USA is you go into the forecourt and ask for "$20.00 on number 3". You then pay, and go out and pump $20 into your car. (Unfortunately this would probably fill up the average car over there too )

[overkill]

Originally Posted by Gordon @ Convergent AV

Had to go get petrol a second ago as I am leaving early tomorrow and didn't want to waste time. Went for a drive around where my hotel is to find a petrol station....found a BP one in a neighborhood I though looked sort of rough. Got out and it wouldn't dispense fuel.....

Then I noticed the signs: Please pay first.......

Is this common anywhere else? Ive never had this before. I had to go and either give a £100 cash deposit or leave my credit card with them before filling the tank!

Wild!

This is fairly common, and very irritating, in Liverpool. It has nothing to do with neighbourhoods. Even in the posher areas you still find them. It's seems this area must be a trial for them.

Part of a general lack of trust/penny pinching these days. Hence the new 'track everything your employees are doing online, in the car, on the shopfloor ' devices.

[eviljohn2]

Never had it around here. I'm sure the UK used to have card payment available at the pumps but it was withdrawn, presumably as nobody used it.

The biggest problem for me is that petrol stations only ever seem to be open during office hours.

[psflynn]

Some Asda's and Tesco's do pay at pump

[Steven]

I blame the retail development near Knowsley/Whiston....it used to be nice and quiet...and you had a safari park right near by! Ahh childhood memories

Yes I know far too many areas of the UK. But am not a hippy

[madcyril]

2 petrol stations near me wont let me put fuel in my bike unless I take my helmet off.As you can guess I visited each only once.

[and36]

Originally Posted by Gordon @ Convergent AV

Near Knowlesly beside Liverpool. Going to Isle of Man tomorrow to see a couple of forum members.

G

Are you staying at the suites hotel or The Holiday Inn, if so then that's Kirkby and is pretty rough

[GBDG1]

Well at least thieves will have use for stolen credit cards now chip and pin has come in.

[hornydragon]

I have seen in certain areas of Brum, but these days i always "pay at pump" at Tesco (when you fill up to the brim 3-4 times a week! you value the few minutes you save queing for the till to pay for the fuel)

[Gordon @ Convergent AV]

Express, Holiday Inn.

G

[and36]

Originally Posted by Gordon @ Convergent AV

Express, Holiday Inn.

G

I use to work in a photography studio just behind the Express Inn (which ironically photograph T.V's for the Shop Direct Catalogue (sample models a couple of months in advance of release)), it sounds like you went to Knowsley Village (if you passed a Church) which is not too bad, it's the other way across the East Lancs you don't want to venture alone into.

[Bat-man]

Why aren't there far more pumps with credit card readers in them?
Put your card in, pump the fuel, take your card out, drive off.
Easy.
OK - so you don't need to go into the 'shop' to pay and be tempted with some chocolate and the like.
But in busy stations there would be much less waiting.

[Phil Hinton]

[Personal opinion]
There are thousands of drive offs every day, so this seems like a good idea to me.

[Vection]

To stop the card scammers. They were having a field day with these pumps!

Yes but with chip and pin it would be safer now wouldn't it?

[GBDG1]

Originally Posted by jakal

Yes but with chip and pin it would be safer now wouldn't it?

as safe as a cash machine anyway

[Dom996]

I've recently come back from the North of France and card only stations were fairly common (basically unmanned)

[hornydragon]

Safer if the CC company would let you "marry" your VRN to your CC number and only process after Numberplate recognition

Anyone seen a drive through cash machine in the U? as in the US its too dangerous to get out and use a ATM in some areas!

[metropolis]

Originally Posted by and36

I use to work in a photography studio just behind the Express Inn (which ironically photograph T.V's for the Shop Direct Catalogue (sample models a couple of months in advance of release)), it sounds like you went to Knowsley Village (if you passed a Church) which is not too bad, it's the other way across the East Lancs you don't want to venture alone into.

if you go to the garage in the village they have signs up to pay in advance,but if they know you face they usually just switch the pump on.

lots of garages require pre payment after hours in liverpool

[shahedz]

Originally Posted by hornydragon

Safer if the CC company would let you "marry" your VRN to your CC number and only process after Numberplate recognition

Anyone seen a drive through cash machine in the U? as in the US its too dangerous to get out and use a ATM in some areas!

you sure its not laziness? rather than danger as to why anyone would want to use a drive through cash machine?

[Knyght_byte]

Originally Posted by shahedz

you sure its not laziness? rather than danger as to why anyone would want to use a drive through cash machine?

in some areas its for security, in other areas its laziness, and in some areas its a disability thing.....

they dont just have cash machines, you can actually do full banking via a drive thru thing with the old vacuum tube system, make deposits, withdrawels, switch funds etc etc....

when i went to stay with a friend i'd known online for a long time and her family, she says because her area has a high rate of elderly and disabled people, the bank there decided to do full drive thru banking to save people having to fiddle around with parking and getting in to the bank and waiting in a queue etc........during certain hours only disabled/eldery people could use the facility.......quite a neat idea really.......

[hornydragon]

Originally Posted by shahedz

you sure its not laziness? rather than danger as to why anyone would want to use a drive through cash machine?

Could be!

[PmSonic]

Originally Posted by jakal

Yes but with chip and pin it would be safer now wouldn't it?

Problem is they dont ask for your pin at the pump, in tesco's anyway.

I used one the other day to fill up, coulsnt really be bothered going into the shop, so just swipped my credit card. No pin asked for, it even said that I was pre authorised to take up to £60 worth on that card.

It's a farce, who's to stope someone 'finding' a credit card in the street, or someone's back pocket & filling up there car scot free.

I know there's cameras, but that doesnt always mean that your face will be on them.

[mh123]

Originally Posted by hornydragon

Anyone seen a drive through cash machine in the U? as in the US its too dangerous to get out and use a ATM in some areas!

Yeah - I've used these many times. It always worries me though that the keys still have the little braille symbols on them...

[Miyazaki]

LOL maybe they use ups combined with some futuristic bat-dar