Motorists will have to make a £99 hold payment to fill up at the pump under new measures being piloted by card providers at several major supermarkets.
Tesco, the UK’s largest grocer, said it replacing the £1 pre-authorisation charge for pay at pump transactions to a £99 ringfenced amount instead.
That means drivers filling up will see up to £99 placed on hold for petrol – although only the amount purchased will be debited from their account - usually within the hour.
The changes are currently being trialled at Tesco Stevenage Broadwater before being rolled out to the rest of the UK later this year.
Sainsbury's told The Mirror it is also running a similar trial in a 'small percentage of petrol filling stations'.
Asda is doing the same after suspending a trial in 2018 following backlash from customers.
Until now, all pay at pump transactions were authorised by requesting a £1 transaction from the card, before taking payment for the value of the fuel one to three days later.
However, under new terms being phased in by card providers and UK Finance, the customer’s bank will pre-authorise £99, with the unused amount released back to their account within 60 minutes.
That means that while the £99 won't leave the cardholders account, the money cannot be spent until it's been released.
What are our thoughts on upfront pay at pump payments? Get in touch: emma.munbodh@mirror.co.uk
If a customer does not have £99 available in their account, the pump will tell them how much they have available and allow them to refuel up to this amount.
Mastercard told us once that cap has been reached, the pump will automatically cut out.
The plans have been met with criticism from drivers who are concerned they may not have enough funds in their account.
One customer said: “Wow. It costs me £16 max to fill up my bike but hold £99. When there's too much month at the end of the money, they're going to decline my card.“
Tesco told The Mirror it is one of a number of large fuel providers Visa and Mastercard have been working with on this change.
Under it, customers will be able to keep a closer eye on their finances and daily spends, it said.
The Tesco website explains: "Under new rules implemented by Mastercard, Visa and American Express, we must now request authorisation from your card issuer for up to £99.
"Once you’ve finished filling up, the final transaction amount is sent to your card issuer, and the remainder of any unused funds up to the maximum filling amount will be released back to your available balance.
"We’ll only ever charge you for the value of the fuel you’ve actually purchased."
The rules have been changed by Mastercard, Visa and American Express to help cardholders to keep control of their budgets in real time, said the supermarket.
According to Tesco, it will only ever charge drivers for the value of the fuel they have purchased.
A Mastercard spokesman told The Mirror the hold payment may show up temporarily on a banking app and advised anyone experiencing issues with the new set up to contact their lender.
“We are working together with banks and petrol stations to improve the way payments are made at ‘Pay At Pump’ sites. The new process is designed to ensure more people’s cards can be used at the pump," a statement said.
"When you pay at pump using your card, a temporary hold of up to £100 is applied to your account prior to pumping the fuel. You may see this initially on your banking App, but immediately after the fuel is dispensed the precise sum is withdrawn from your account, and any remainder of the held funds are released for use. Should cardholders experience any issues or have any questions regarding this new process they should contact their bank.”
"If a customer’s account balance is less than £100, this is communicated to the petrol pump by their bank or card issuer, enabling only the balance they have available as an equivalent of fuel to be dispensed. The pump will then automatically cut out once the customer has reached that amount."
A Visa spokeswoman said: “This could be up to a maximum of £100 but each retailer may request a lower amount. Once you’ve finished filling your vehicle, the petrol pump will immediately notify your bank of the actual value of the petrol you’ve purchased and your bank will be able to update your balance right away.
"This should happen almost instantly but occasionally it may take a little longer. If this is the case, please contact your bank directly."
Asda has also been approached for comment. Morrisons declined to comment.
What is a pre-authorisation check?
A 'pre-authorisation check' is not a charge and will not result in your account being charged the ringfenced amount.
Put simply, it means the bank/credit card issuer will hold that amount for a short while - usually an hour - until the person's account is debited with the correct amount.
To use the pay at the pump service, customers must enter their card and pin number before being able to fill up with fuel.
The service station then runs a "pre-authorisation" check to "ringfence" a specific amount of cash to ensure you have enough funds.
Your card is then charged the true cost depending on how much you fill up and the rest of the money should be released back into your account.
It is aimed at stopping motorists with insufficient funds in their bank accounts from filling up their cars and clamping down on theft.
