Pay before you pump

[SmithW6079]

This thread may be of more interest to those who are carlite rather than carfree, but on my way out to the lake a couple weeks ago I filled up at a gas station that required you to pay before you could fill your vehicle. This is becoming more common, apparently in response to the increased number of drive offs due to high gas prices. I've also noticed many more CCTV systems at gas stations.

While gas prices are high in North America from a historical perspective, they are nowhere near as high as other places in the world. Is this the first salvo in the upcoming war over diminishing resources? The harbinger of peak oil? Others would argue this first shot was fired in Iraq, but that's a whole other topic of dispute.

Anyone else encountering the pay before you pump scenario?

[ModoVincere]

Its been that way since Katrina hit the Gulf states and wiped out a lot of the production capacity. At least here in Atlanta, anyway.
That's why I like my credit card, I don't have to go inside to pay and then pump exactly the right amount or go back inside to get my change.

[abeyance]

I go to a gas station about 5 times a week (for life's necessities-beer and such, not gas). The owner said that when gas prices go up, thefts go up. It's that simple.
But when I do pump gas, they don't make me prepay. Shop at locally owned businesses who know you.(even if the owners are Indian or Pakistani in my case. I hate cooperate stores.).

[same time]

I've seen "pay before you pump" stickers on pumps since I got my first car in the late 80's. I thought it was pretty standard now. Maybe it used to be just a convenience store thing, and now the big gas stations have them, too.

On a related note, does anyone else feel like they're all thumbs when they operate a gas pump? I fill a car with gas about once a month, and always feel like an idiot trying to find the "yes" button or whatever while the pump beeps at me really loud.

[Dwighty83]

This is the standard all over CA. I've never known anything else when I had a car.

[jamesdenver]

This isn't new. I haven't seen an urban gas station in years that HASN'T been pay first. Or even one out in the sticks. Using a card at the pump is faster anyway. You don't have to wait behind someone cashing in a pile of Lotto scratchers and collecting $3 to invest in more scratchers.

I do find it annoying that the "pop up" for a carwash gives me the option of "Yes" or "No, Thanks". Why is a gas pump that's impeding my process of filling up assuming I'm going to be polite about it? More like "No, I want to pump my godam gas already"

[wrafl]

I've observed that policy for some time now and not only in the midwest but in other parts of the country as well. If you want to avoid inconvenience of walking to the cashier, you can pay at the pump with credit or debit cards. The very reason is the drive offs.

[nelson249]

I recall seeing a lot of pay before you pump stations driving down to the US long before Katrina.With the profit margin on gasoline being so slim a lot of franchised operators simply cannot afford to have people run off without paying. Most gas stations here in Ontario have newer pumps that take debit and credit cards right on the spot rather than having to dash in and wait in line to pay.

[Platy]

The convenience store nearest to me stopped selling gas about two years ago. Doesn't seem to have hurt their business any. The old pump bay makes a good bike rack.

[worker4youth]

I have never, ever seen a pay-after-you-pump in Los Angeles. Ever.

[Bikepacker67]

I guess we're a bunch of gas stealin' nere-do-wells up in New England, because back home it's been pay b4 you pump since at least the early 90's.

[Bushman]

Vancouver BC is Pay at the pump 80% of the time during the day (20% are not) , 100% of the time after dark (all stations)

we had a young man dragged over 12 kms under a car, by a gas and dash thief the same age as the victim. Police caught up to the vehicle simply by following the 12 km long by 20" wide swatch of blood and bone grinding marks. Gas and dash theif got a slap on the wrist byt the ball-less, spineless coward of a Judge, EVEN after testimony by the thief that he heard screaming from under the car the whole time he was driving. The victims mother had to be hospitalized after the sentence was handed down.

[Bikepacker67]

we had a young man dragged over 12 kms under a car, by a gas and dash thief the same age as the victim. Police caught up to the vehicle simply by following the 12 km long by 20" wide swatch of blood and bone grinding marks. Gas and dash theif got a slap on the wrist byt the ball-less, spineless coward of a Judge, EVEN after testimony by the thief that he heard screaming from under the car the whole time he was driving. The victims mother had to be hospitalized after the sentence was handed down.

I heard about that on the CBC. Aren't the parents trying to get a law passed that all gas stations be pre-pay?

[Platy]

...Gas and dash theif got a slap on the wrist byt the ball-less, spineless coward of a Judge, EVEN after testimony by the thief that he heard screaming from under the car the whole time he was driving...
Google reveals that the murderer was Darnell Pratt and the sentence was five years, ten months. It seems to me that homicide with a motor vehicle is often not treated as a very serious crime.

[Bushman]

I heard about that on the CBC. Aren't the parents trying to get a law passed that all gas stations be pre-pay?


yep, but the individual station owners (some, about 5%) are balking at it, citing its too difficult. :rolleyes: also some station owners demand that their employees run out and try to stop the cars. Thankfully VERY few do that now, there was so much attention brought on to them.

[Bushman]

Google reveals that the murderer was Darnell Pratt and the sentence was five years, ten months. It seems to me that homicide with a motor vehicle is often not treated as a very serious crime.


yep, slap on the wrist. Mr Pratt is sitting in a LOW security 'jail",complete with a recreational facility (video games, pooltable, mini pitch and ptt, big screen, self contained kitchen units etc.

it disgusts me.

I thing Pratt should be tied to a car and dragged for 12kms , with his face melting on the catalytic converter like the victim suffered.

[wahoonc]

Pay before you pump. My beef is that it "preauthorizes" your credit card and shuts off at $50 or $75 depending on the station...that is no fun when you are buying around $125+ worth of diesel!:mad: I have a couple of stations that I frequent that recognize my truck and will turn the pump on for me and let me go in to pay. But it has to be during the right shift...

Aaron:)

[Bikepacker67]

Evidently, the BC court of appeals took into account Darnell Pratt's age and aboriginal background.

WTF? Are aboriginals less than fully human, and therefor less responsible for their actions?

[Ziemas]

I haven't lived in the States for many years, and it was that way when I lived there. I guess it's a city thing.....

[lyeinyoureye]

The only pump before you pay I've seen has been some diesel in CA.

[Bushman]

Evidently, the BC court of appeals took into account Darnell Pratt's age and aboriginal background.

WTF? Are aboriginals less than fully human, and therefor less responsible for their actions?

dont get me started.

[Cosmoline]

Back before I ditched the auto, I drove all over AK. When I first came up in 98 there was no prepay required anywhere. By 2004 every station but one or two required prepay, and they have since required it too.

[JeanCoutu]

I only once payed before pumping, that was because I didn't know how much money I had left in my account, so I went in to pay in advance just to be sure. I pre-payed for 20$ of gas but turns out the car wasn't that thirsty, quite inconveniant. But I can't recall ever going to a service station where I *had* to pay before pumping.

I also recall having to read the cost shown on the pump's dial before going in the store to pay for it, and forgetting other stuff I wanted or forgetting the price and having to go back out to check. That too was rather inconveniant.

Better to leave cars alone and use a bike, really.

[evblazer]

The town my wife works in recently passed an ordinance that they will fine the gas station owners if they allow people to pump before paying.
They were getting too many calls each week about driveoffs and fining the gas stations for letting it happen was their solution. They haven't received a call from any gas stations owners since and all the pumps are pay before you pump. :)

[lima_bean]

This thread may be of more interest to those who are carlite rather than carfree, but on my way out to the lake a couple weeks ago I filled up at a gas station that required you to pay before you could fill your vehicle.
Anyone else encountering the pay before you pump scenario?

Until recently, I never had heard of any other way. I didnt know there existed gas stations that let you pump before you pay..

I dont think this is a recent thing at all, and I think its been the normal in some places a long long time.

[gerv]

I've survived most of this summer on one tank of gas and if the gas station owner refused to give me any gas at all, it might convince the rest of my family to stop using the car. Pre or post pay doesn't matter much to me. Or hopefully most here. It's a luxury bicycle owners enjoy :)

[bragi]

with those card-swiping things at the pumps, does it really matter? And why are so many people trying to steal gas, anyway? Just because it's expensive doesn't mean you get to steal it. Yes, the oil companies are robbing the rest of us blind, but it's no good to steal from some guy who owns a gas station. He's not the one who controls the price of oil. And if you don't use any gas (i.e., are carfree), you don't have to pay for it or steal it. :p

[makeinu]

I have never, ever seen a pay-after-you-pump in Los Angeles. Ever.

I have never, ever seen a pay-after-you-pump anywhere. Ever.

[Bushman]

:D:p:D:p:D

[gregtheripper]

when i lived in new jersey, you paid after, but you're not allowed to pump your own gas there either.

[r8ingbull]

I have never, ever seen a pay-after-you-pump anywhere. Ever.

I have never payed before pumping gas. Must be the small town attitude...

[acroy]

i have never, ever paid with anything other than a credit card. before all the pumps had credit card machines on them, it was pay after. now all the ones i can think of say prepay.

not that i go to gas stations much - maybe once every 2 months.

my wife, OTOH, has been driving 500+ miles/week recently (helping with disabled sister 50 miles away). gas was over $200 last month. ack!

[Robert C]

Evidently, the BC court of appeals took into account Darnell Pratt's age and aboriginal background.

WTF? Are aboriginals less than fully human, and therefor less responsible for their actions?

Not even going to comment, except to say that when I was a Child Welfare Investigator I discovered that there are different laws for different people.

Back to the topic at hand. What angers me is that they will not give me a receipt for the money I hand them in advance. After all, if they are calling me a thief before we have even met, why should I trust them? They still demand my money and still refuse to give a receipt.

[SmithW6079]

Thanks for the interesting replies everyone. I noticed that most of the American replies seem to be of the "prepay" variety. I guess that's not quite as common north of the border in Manitoba yet, but things are slowly changing. Perhaps we Canucks are still a little behind the times, and showing our innocence (or naivety)? :D

[TrackGuy]

Depends on where you are... It's been Pay Before You Pump in NYC for as long as I can remember, we now have to input the billing zip of our credit cards to activate the pump. In upstate NY, they're more trusting of their customers, I guess people filling up and driving off without paying isn't an issue.