- Report: #814781
Complaint Review: AmPm gas Station Store - VANCOUVER Washington
Reported By:
mek -
VANCOUVER, Washington, United States of America
Submitted:
Updated:
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Author Confirmed
Why?
AmPm gas Station Store
10314 S.E.MILL PLAIN ROAD VANCOUVER, 98664-4527 Washington, United States of America
Phone:
360-896-6233
Web:
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AmPm gas Station Store When you pay @ pump they took out $100.00 from my bank account on a 3 day hold VANCOUVER, Washington
I went to get gas at the AmPm store on 12-21-11. Iused my Debit Card at the Pump. and I come home to check my Bank Statement and there is $100.00 taken out! Icalled my Bank and there is A 3 day hold. It fell off on 12-24-11.it came back on 12-26-11. Making me have A negative Account! I never heard of such taken money out of your account without Permission. I never saw any fine print anywhere saying they will take money out for using your Debit Card at the pump. I knew about the .35 cents. As of 12-28-11 the $100.00 came back in.Whats to say for it to come out again!! It's not right for them to do this!! Please Help. Thank You
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Flynrider
Phoenix,Arizona,
USA
How the debit card works.
#2Consumer Comment
Thu, December 29, 2011
There is a lot of misunderstanding about how debit cards work. One of the big misunderstandings is related how and when a hold is placed on funds.
"I come home to check my Bank Statement and there is $100.00 taken out! "
It was not taken out. It was held. Basically, a hold represents a reserve that a merchant places on money in your account for a purchase.
The problem you're having is related to the question you are often asked when you present your debit card to pay for something. The cashier will often ask, "credit or debit". What surprises me is that most people (including the cashiers who ask the question) don't know what this means. Most people assume that it means their debit card functions as a credit card. They'd be wrong.
The "credit" option, which is also what happens automatically at the gas pump, will reserve an amount specified by the merchant, which shows up as a hold in your account, until the actual transaction posts in several days. This is also known as an "offline debit".
The "debit" option will process the exact amount of the transaction to your account immediately.
Your problem is that gas pumps that take debit cards must always process the card as a "credit", since they don't know what the total purchase amount will be. This results in a large hold on your account. Your best bet is not to use "pay at the pump" with a debit card.
Ken
Colorado,USA
Next time don't use your debit card...
#3Consumer Suggestion
Wed, December 28, 2011
The hold is put on by ALL gasoline stations to cover the probable maximum amount of the purchase. This must be the first time you used your debit card for this or the first time you were aware of it.
They have no reason to, and will not be withholding an additional amount on the same transaction.
The just want to be sure you didn't go somewhere else and max out your debit card before they could get the funds from your account.....get over it. I would suspect you would find this info in your debit card agreement.
Robert
Irvine,California,
U.S.A.
Standard
#4Consumer Comment
Wed, December 28, 2011
This is pretty standard when you Pay at the Pump with your Debit Card, and it really does not matter what gas station you go to. When you "Pay at the Pump" they have no idea how much you are going to pump so they hold a specific amount, generally between $50 and $100 but I have heard of some holding up to $125. Had you actually pumped $100 worth of gas the pump would have actually have stopped.
Now, in normal circumstances the hold is supposed to be released when the real debit goes through. But for various reasons this is not always the case. Also, while the final debit may be immediate it may also take anywhere from 1-3 days for the real debit to come through. So you have to wait until the real one comes through and they release the hold or the hold just "falls off". As to why it came back on for 2 days after it fell off is something you need to talk to your bank about.
If you want to avoid this in the future you will need to go inside and request a specific amount.
