Residents Sue Over Gas Pump Credit Card Holds

The lawsuit filed against the biggest U.S. diesel retailer wants to stop the holds, but NACS points out the real culprits are banks.

March 09, 2016

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Two Tennessee residents have filed lawsuits against the biggest U.S. diesel retailer over the holds banks require when using pay-at-the-pump purchases with a credit card, The Associated Press reports. The lawsuits accuse Pilot of $75 to $500 holds that last from hours to days on the credit cards of customers filling up.

Jeff Lenard, NACS vice president of industry initiatives, said that the hold policy is standard across the convenience store industry because banks mandate the practice to ensure purchases are paid for. With the exact amount of purchase not known when a customer inserts his credit card at the pump, banks make retailers place a hold, the amount of which usually covers a maximum fill-up cost. For passenger vehicles, that amount is around $75, but for tractor trailers, the hold amount can be significantly more.

After the transaction is complete, the retailer alerts the bank as to the exact payment, but the banks have control over when to release the hold. Lenard pointed out that customers wanting to avoid a hold should pay with their debit cards and PIN, because that triggers a real-time transaction and usually means a hold releases immediately.

The lawsuit is asking for damages and a court order to forbid Pilot from “excessive” holds on customer credit cards. Pilot had no comment on the lawsuit.

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