41–48 of 48 posts
Gas stations in New Zealand are interesting because for the majority of them you fill up before paying inside. They trust you not to drive away with their gas. Self-pay gas stations are relatively new.
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> Pay before fill is predominantly an American thing Huh? Every gas station I've seen in the US is fill before pay. Except in NJ where there's an attendant.
Are you posting from an alternate universe? Or the 1950s?
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When you can pay with card at the pump, the only remaining users for "pay inside" are thieves and the occasional cash-only customer. Also no surprise they don't want you to pay cash, that means dealing with cash which is expensive. Employees at the gas station could spend their time selling hot dogs instead :)
Or people from Europe. It’s 50/50 whether an automated station will accept my European card - can’t figure out the pattern there
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Putting a card in before pumping is considered "prepay". They'll put a hold on your account to make sure you have the money. There isn't much point to post-pay with cards. 10–15 years ago it was common in the US where you would pull up, hit "pay inside", pump all your gas, then go inside and pay at the register. Now because of theft, if you want to pay with cash, virtually all stations require you to go inside, pay f…
Well you can fill it up, but you have to run back in to get your change. If you have two people one can wait, start it once the other pays, then you both go to the bathroom and pick up the change on the way out.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Putting a card in before pumping is considered "prepay". They'll put a hold on your account to make sure you have the money. There isn't much point to post-pay with cards. 10–15 years ago it was common in the US where you would pull up, hit "pay inside", pump all your gas, then go inside and pay at the register. Now because of theft, if you want to pay with cash, virtually all stations require you to go inside, pay f…
When you can pay with card at the pump, the only remaining users for "pay inside" are thieves and the occasional cash-only customer. Also no surprise they don't want you to pay cash, that means dealing with cash which is expensive. Employees at the gas station could spend their time selling hot dogs instead :)
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Pay before fill is predominantly an American thing. Australia, NZ, UK and most of Europe all operate on a fill then pay. Some stations in Australia at least are an exception that open 24/7 and have no employees and are prepaid and some manned stations where they charge at the pump during night hours for safety reasons.
> Pay before fill is predominantly an American thing Huh? Every gas station I've seen in the US is fill before pay. Except in NJ where there's an attendant.
Gas stations in New Zealand are interesting because for the majority of them you fill up before paying inside. They trust you not to drive away with their gas. Self-pay gas stations are relatively new.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Are you posting from an alternate universe? Or the 1950s?
This was the norm during my childhood (90s and 00s). Paying at the pump is a fairly recent development. I think gas stations were reluctant to adopt it because it makes it harder to sell snacks. I live in Australia now, and all the servos (gas stations) I've encountered here are just like the American gas stations I grew up with: you pump, then go inside to pay. The only real difference is that adding air to your tir…
Within the similar timeframe I've always encountered the three-step process: you go inside and pre-pay, back out to pump, then back in to get your change (if you didn't just load $20 onto the pump and use it all, anyway). Even the 'pay inside' button on the pumps just flashes "See attendant" on the screen. Same when I worked at gas stations during the downturn. The only places I've ever found that'll let you pump before paying have been the most rural lil independent stations. Gotta love the varied experiences across this bigass country.