Wouldnt gas stations make more $ if you CANT pay at the pump with credit card?

[JEDI]

debit card only at pump or you have to walk inside and prepay.

gas stations don't make much $ off gas.
they get most of their profit from selling high profit items like candy/soda/chips.

but in order to sell those, you must walk inside.
and a way to make you go inside is not allowing credit cards at the pump.

and since it's debit card only at the pump, they can sell the gas for cheaper because of no credit card fees.

This worked on me in Vegas:
needed to top off gas for rental car b4 returning it.
saw a gas station with lower gas prices.
surprised I couldn't pay at pump so walked inside.
while in there, I bought a pack of gum.

 

[IronWing]

One local chain requires chip cards to be read with chip reader but hasn't upgraded their pumps with chip readers and therefore requires customers to pre-pay. I don't get gas there anymore.

 

[BxgJ]

Too much of a hassle. Any place that I couldn't pay at the pump would be somewhere I would not go.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

debit card only at pump or you have to walk inside and prepay.

gas stations don't make much $ off gas.
they get most of their profit from selling high profit items like candy/soda/chips.

but in order to sell those, you must walk inside.
and a way to make you go inside is not allowing credit cards at the pump.

and since it's debit card only at the pump, they can sell the gas for cheaper because of no credit card fees.

This worked on me in Vegas:
needed to top off gas for rental car b4 returning it.
saw a gas station with lower gas prices.
surprised I couldn't pay at pump so walked inside.
while in there, I bought a pack of gum.

The moment I realize I have to walk in is the moment I drive across the street to the gas station that isn't stupid.

Same thing as gas stations that have a "cash price" and a "normal price". I will never go to one.

Voting with your wallet is what truly makes shit happen in life.

 

[JEDI]

The moment I realize I have to walk in is the moment I drive across the street to the gas station that isn't stupid.

Same thing as gas stations that have a "cash price" and a "normal price". I will never go to one.

Voting with your wallet is what truly makes shit happen in life.

and for cities that allow a separate cash/debit + credit card price, EVERY gas station does it.
(except Costco)

 

[IronWing]

Too much of a hassle. Any place that I couldn't pay at the pump would be somewhere I would not go.

Yep, magic pumps are up there on the list of best inventions of the twentieth century. I can buy gas w/o having to interact with people. It's so nice.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

and for cities that allow a separate cash/debit + credit card price, EVERY gas station does it.
(except Costco)

Considering I do live in one of those cities, that is entirely incorrect. There are plenty of ones that do not.

 

[lxskllr]

I always pay cash, and I never get anything from a gas station I didn't already intend on buying.

 

[Ken g6]

I've stopped paying at the pump to avoid skimmers. I'll start again when I find a pump with a chip reader.

 

[foghorn67]

I use Samsung Pay with the cashier inside. Eff skimmers.

 

[Carson Dyle]

debit card only at pump or you have to walk inside and prepay.

gas stations don't make much $ off gas.
they get most of their profit from selling high profit items like candy/soda/chips.

but in order to sell those, you must walk inside.

I don't believe that assertion. The profit margin on those food and sundry items may be higher, but for that very reason - most people never enter the convenience store - they must make a profit selling only gas.

and a way to make you go inside is not allowing credit cards at the pump.

and since it's debit card only at the pump, they can sell the gas for cheaper because of no credit card fees.

Wrong. Merchants still pay fees on debit cards. I'm not sure there's even any difference in fees between a debit and a credit card transaction for the merchant.

 

[JEDI]

I don't believe that assertion. The profit margin on those food and sundry items may be higher, but for that very reason - most people never enter the convenience store - they must make a profit selling only gas.


Wrong. Merchants still pay fees on debit cards. I'm not sure there's even any difference in fees between a debit and a credit card transaction for the merchant.

I never said they didn't make a profit off just selling gas. I said they don't make much profit.
heck, your post has a quote of me saying that.

credit cards have a flat fee + around 2% of sales for small sized businesses. (larger businesses like walmart can negotiate for smaller fees.)
debit cards just have the flat fee. I consider the % of sales fee as the credit card fee.

 

[Carson Dyle]

I never said they didn't make a profit off just selling gas. I said they don't make much profit.
heck, your post has a quote of me saying that.

But if that profit were so small that they'd feel a need to force customers inside the store, then they likely wouldn't exist at all.

credit cards have a flat fee + around 2% of sales for small sized businesses. (larger businesses like walmart can negotiate for smaller fees.)
debit cards just have the flat fee. I consider the % of sales fee as the credit card fee.

I don' believe that's true. It's been a few years since I set up merchant accounts for a number of web sites, but there was no distinction between credit and debit cards in the processing or in the fees. There was a flat transaction fee, plus a percentage. I know the percentage rate is different for different cards (Amex vs. Visa vs MasterCard, etc.) so maybe there's a difference for debit cards, but I can't believe that it's zero.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I don't believe that assertion. The profit margin on those food and sundry items may be higher, but for that very reason - most people never enter the convenience store - they must make a profit selling only gas.



Wrong. Merchants still pay fees on debit cards. I'm not sure there's even any difference in fees between a debit and a credit card transaction for the merchant.

To my understanding is debit w/pin charges the merchant less because the pin is built in security thus less fraud and arguably less over drafts but its definitely not a free transaction for the merchant.
I have worked at small retailers, some lil credit/debit because it goes straight to the bank pretty quickly and nobody can steal it.
In regards to your above point I believe all debit cards get handled as a credit card on websites because you cannot enter your pin. I am not a subject matter expert so I may be wrong.

 

[Exterous]

Here in MI its legal to charge more at gas stations if you use a card so...

 

[Carson Dyle]

The gas station that I've been going to for years near me recently changed hands and instituted a so-called cash discount. I tried paying cash -- once.

First, you have to prepay. So to fill the tank I did a quick mental calculation and added a few bucks, made a trip into the store and gave the cashier $45. Went back, filled up. Then back into the store, got a couple dollars and some coins in change, left the store. Remembered I wanted a receipt for tracking mileage, went back in, got the receipt. Back to the car.

Screw that. I'll happily pay an extra 60 or 75 cents or whatever per tank for the convenience of using a card.

 

[Newbian]

Here in MI its legal to charge more at gas stations if you use a card so...

It's like that at a lot of places but they have to warn you thus usually why you see a cash price and a credit price.

 

[BoomerD]

Around here, cash prices for gas are usually 10 cents cheaper than credit/debit prices. Stations have gotten into the "convenience fee" scam.

 

[Aikouka]

In my experience, prepay is the absolute worst for gas station efficiency. I tend to fill up at a Kroger that's not in the most affluent part of town, and as you may guess, almost everyone prepays. This station has some of the worst waits that I've seen because people will get out of their car, walk over to the cashier, and I literally won't see them come back until I'm already done pumping my gas or not at all. (In other words, they're still in line.) Before I moved, I live near a different Kroger with a more affluent clientele, and almost everyone paid at the pump. Even if all the pumps were full, the wait was much shorter.

 

[cbrunny]

I don't go to stations that require me to interact with someone. Pay at pump or on to the next station.

 

[lxskllr]

In my experience, prepay is the absolute worst for gas station efficiency. I tend to fill up at a Kroger that's not in the most affluent part of town, and as you may guess, almost everyone prepays. This station has some of the worst waits that I've seen because people will get out of their car, walk over to the cashier, and I literally won't see them come back until I'm already done pumping my gas or not at all. (In other words, they're still in line.)

Probably buying lottery tickets. I fucking hate the lottery.

 

[Zee]

around here, almost all gas stations that have separate credit/cash price has the same credit price as the station that doesnt separate the price.

so it actually is cheaper to pay cash.

 

[OutHouse]

Yep, magic pumps are up there on the list of best inventions of the twentieth century. I can buy gas w/o having to interact with people. It's so nice.

which is why i get annoyed when the printer at the pump is out of paper and i have to go inside to get my receipt.

 

[NoTine42]

which is why i get annoyed when the printer at the pump is out of paper and i have to go inside to get my receipt.

Do e-mail receipts work for something like that?
(I get e-mail receipts when I use my FuelRewards discount card)

 

[QueBert]

around here, almost all gas stations that have separate credit/cash price has the same credit price as the station that doesnt separate the price.

so it actually is cheaper to pay cash.

Around here the stations that don't charge a card fee the gas will be anywhere from 5-35 cents a gallon more. So the Arco type places with a .35 flat card fee end up being a lot cheaper to fill up. Of course I still know a ton of people who can't get it thru their head that they're paying more in the end. They just think since there's no fee it's cheaper.

Chevron has no fee, and last time I was there the gas was 28 cents a gallon more than USA gas, USA gas charges 50 cents to use debit. I'll take the charge please.