Gas card vs Credit card

[Optimistic Paranoid]

So there was a thread over on Expedition Portal - several people who attended the Overland Expo East reported that their credit cards were compromised.  After some back and forth discussion, the consensus seems to be that it didn't happen AT the Expo, but probably occurred at a nearby gas station.  One of the people in the thread asserted that gas stations are frequent targets of those card reader gadgets.

Personally, I never use a Visa or MasterCard to buy gas, I have an ExxonMobil card, which I pay off in full every month.

It's occurred to me that if someone was reading cards at a gas station, they would only be interested in real credit cards, which could be used to charge computers, and other expensive electronics which they would then resell for cash.  Having my ExxonMobil information wouldn't be of much interest to them, since they couldn't buy much except gas with it.

(Back when gas stations were real service stations, you could also charge things like tires and batteries to your gas card, but really, when was the last time you saw a real service station?)

Anyway, that's my theory, but it's always possible I'm wrong, and there are several people here who know more about this stuff than I do, so I would invite their comments.

And if I am right, then the question becomes how many of you here have gas cards, and how many just use your credit card?

Regards
John

 

[highdesertranger]

well with a gas card you can buy anything in the store. think black market items, cigs and alcohol. these items can be bought with a stolen gas card and can readily be sold at half price. without getting political I think you can see what happens with high tax items it opens a black market. highdesertranger

 

[TMG51]

I think more important is that a reputable credit card vendor will always side with the customer. I've never had an issue with a credit card holder when saying, "I did not make this charge."

With a debit card, that's a different story.

 

[Reducto]

I didn't know there was such a thing as cards that only worked for gas anymore. I thought they were all just credit cards with different bonuses and brand names.

In any case, with credit cards you are protected against fraud. It's just a pain sometimes while you wait for things to clear. It's a good idea to have some sort of backup card in case the one you normally use goes bad.

 

[SoulRaven]

To make a long story shorter, I don't especially trust the credit card companies a whole lot either. My solution is to have a rechargeable pre-paid credit card, that I can keep only slightly over what I'm planning on spending in. It is not associated with my bank account in any way. I can refill it online via paypal, or at many locations in person if the need ever arises.

This way if it is ever compromised, they can only charge very little on it, but I use only it for any purchases as a safety measure.

 

[Canine]

There are pros and cons. As you said, if you become a victim of fraud, then having a gas card will severely limit what the crooks can steal. You can also get fuel cards that dispense only gas or only diesel. However, with a fuel card, you get the name brand and can only go to that brand. If you get a Cenex card, you can fuel up only at a Cenex station. If you get a Town Pump card, you can fuel up only at a Town Pump, but you have the option of getting foodstuffs and other items in the store if you have the card set up to accept everything. This becomes more of an issue when you may need to drive 60 miles or even to another state to go to a fuel station that accepts your specific gas card. A credit card from one of the Big 4 will allow you to fuel up at any station at any time of day that has pumps that take credit or charge cards.

With a standard credit or charge card you can put limits on that card as well. You can't specify gas or diesel, but you can put monetary limits on it. You can also limit it to work only in one country.

FYI: Fueling up at a truck stop puts a much larger hold on your card than at a regular gas station. If you are flirting on the edge of your credit limit, you could easily find yourself unable to fuel up. Usually happens during a storm or a medical emergency.

I use an AMEX (American Express) rewards card that gives me 3% when fueling up. There are limitations to the 3%: I can't fuel up at a box or grocery store's fuel station or I get the default 1% such as at a Smith's grocery store fuel station or at a Sam's Club fuel station. Also, if you want to get the full 3% at a Town Pump, use the card at the pump instead of inside. If you go inside, the stuff in there is only 1% cash back and paying for fuel along with inside stuff will code the fuel as 1%. Also, Anco doesn't qualify for 3%.

Rewards cards have higher interest rates. Gas cards also have high interest rates. It's more important to pay the bill on time with one of these. A Credit Union Visa or MasterCard will give you much lower interest rates on unpaid balances.

When North America finally gets in gear, we well be using a pin number along with the card. This combined with a chipped card reduces fraud by a large margin.

When all the pumps go to dipping instead of swiping, this specific issue won't be an issue. This should happen within the next 6 months. Speed Pass is a method of using a chip that stops thieves from stealing your card number; chipped cards that are dipped (not swiped) have the same inherent protection. Only the swiping method allows criminals to steal your card number to use it for multiple transactions within the credit limit of the card.

If you aren't concerned about benefiting from a rewards card at the pump, walk in, use the card inside, walk back out to the van, fill up, then walk back in to sign for the charge. That is an easy way to avoid those card readers the criminals sneak in at the pumps.

Off Grid, you use a good and acceptable method to be able to use today's technology in a safe way, but I want to clarify some things.

To the best of my knowledge there is no such thing as a prepaid "credit" card. Let's call them prepaid cards. They have varying degrees of protection depending on the issuer. Prepaid cards are fairly new to the market with lots of variances in the cards. Some prepaid cards act more like a credit card and some act more like an expensive debit card. Most act more like debit cards. Some are FDIC protected and some aren't. Some charge activation fees and some don't. Most charge a load up fee when you put more money on the card. Some are chipped and some aren't- get a chipped one! Some provide fraud protection and some don't. Some have perks and some don't. If you are getting a prepaid to increase your level of consumer protection, shopping around to find one that provides the most protection within your financials needs/wants will increase that protection.

 

[TMG51]

When North America finally gets in gear, we well be using a pin number along with the card. This combined with a chipped card reduces fraud by a large margin.

I really resent these security "features" that keep getting added. From my observation, the primary function of the chip card is to force the consumer to stand in the check out line like a drooling idiot waiting for the computer to read the thing. Then half the time the cashier or the person in front of you or the machine itself doesn't do it right. Then I started running into gas pumps that prompt for your billing zip. The first time I had one of those was after changing my address 4 times and I couldn't remember which was on the card. Oh man, that pissed me off. Now I'm going to need a PIN as well apparently. The responsible consumer gets a card that is backed by a guarantee from the vendor, and if his identity is stolen the vendor honors that. I'm sure all of these "features" make less work for the card vendors but they put the burden on the consumers.

I am of the opinion that quality of daily life matters more than a perceived assurance that nothing will ever go wrong. When Americans can't board a plane without having their tube of tooth paste confiscated, it means the terrorists won. When I can't go through a check out line without jumping through extra hoops, it means the identity thieves have had the last laugh.

There's my rant for the afternoon.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

This becomes more of an issue when you may need to drive 60 miles or even to another state to go to a fuel station that accepts your specific gas card. A credit card from one of the Big 4 will allow you to fuel up at any station at any time of day that has pumps that take credit or charge card.

Of course, if I can't FIND an Exxon or Mobil station, I will use my Visa or MasterCard rather than drive any distance out of my way.

BTW, where I am, the stations have one price for cash and a higher price for credit.  But the gas company card get's the cash price.

Regards
John

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I really resent these security "features" that keep getting added.

I really hate to come across sounding like an apologist for the banks.

My understanding is that the banks are losing gazillions to credit card fraud.

Logically, there are three options here:

1:  They can continue to eat the losses.
2:  They can make it harder for the fraud to happen.
3:  They can stop letting us consumers off the hook so easily when we claim fraud occurred.

On a completely unrelated note . . . I was reading the Lonely Planet book on Iceland.  I'd love to go there someday to explore and do photography.  They mentioned that if your credit card DIDN'T have a pin number, it probably wouldn't work there . . .

Regards
John

 

[Canine]

TMG51, The reason your zip code is required at some spots is to help make sure that the owner of the card is using the card not a thief. A thief is less likely to know your card. A better way, and a way that uses less personal information, is to use a pin. I don't mean to tell you the obvious, but some of our less experienced readers may not be aware of the reason.

The security features the cards are getting do take more time. But if those measures weren't being put into place, consumers would be spending that time driving to the bank to take care of fraudulent transactions. Or time spent on the phone or time waiting for the new card to come in. At least less money would be going out to pay for fraud.

More security measures could be put into place that would take even more time. We could have retina scans or some form of bio-identification. That all takes more money and time. We could also have guards checking our id at each fuel station. The lines would be really long then.

We could go backwards and stop with the credit cards and just put a bowl out there and anyone paying for gas would drop their cash in the bowl. That would be really fast and we wouldn't have to pay interest rates or annual fees.

Of course that is ridiculous, but I put that out there to show that some level of security is needed. Too much security is bad; too little is bad. What is the best way to manage the risk of fraud with our money? That will vary from person to person, but banks, credit card issuers, insurance companies, law enforcement, etc. need to make a decision to keep our and their funds relatively safe. Using the decades-old swipe is a high risk. Not all risk can be eliminated, but making a reasonable effort to keep my money out of thieves' pockets is good with me. Punching in a 4 digit number would take several seconds out of my life per month; I'm OK with that. Waiting a few more seconds to dip a card rather than scanning it is a burden that is worth my time. I've been burdened far more with time and inconvenience dealing with fraudulent activity on my card.

My job as a truck driver required a 6 digit pin. I never batted an eye at that. It was super duper easy.

What is going to be a pain at first is the physical act of dipping. People are going to put their cards in and immediately take them out due to habit. People will leave their cards in the machine. Cards will be put in backwards. People will need to be educated how to dip a card; that takes time. It will speed up eventually, but at first it will be a pain. Especially for those stubborn folks that won't make the effort to learn something new even if it is easy and in their best interest.

Each person manages their risk in their own way, and that's fine. I have no issue with what you do with your money or how you want it handled. Not every person in the world is going to like the new system; however, I can just about guarantee that those same people will probably appreciate the diminished fraud. Airline security is so bad that I don't fly. Part of it is the lack of oversight with the TSA. While banks do have a serious lack of oversight, when it comes to credit cards, we are surprisingly well protected. Not absolutely protected, but pretty well.

Am really glad you mentioned the zip code thing. If I moved and couldn't remember which card had which zip code, that would piss me off, too. Especially if I hadn't been notified ahead of time of that requirement.

 

[Almost There]

Having a PIN for a credit card is already a way of life here in Canada and it's coming to a card machine near you soon!!

My new US $ RBCBank credit card has a PIN as does my debit card for my bank account.

I guess I don't remember whether the  charge card from Flagstar bank had a PIN or not!

Some of the machines here don't require a PIN if you can tap your card, only if you swipe it but not all merchants are set up with machines that have the tap feature on them.

 

[TMG51]

Of course I understand the reason for the zip code/pin/chip/rectal probe* on credit cards. I think the basis of my objection was stated pretty clearly.

*Forecasting

 

[Canine]

TMG51, I thought my info on risk management regarding credit card usage and safety inferred that I understood what your objection to increasing credit card security. Are you not referring to me, or did I actually miss the basis of your objection?

 

[griffo1962]

They mentioned that if your credit card DIDN'T have a pin number, it probably wouldn't work there . . .

Regards
John

same downunder, all credit cards now have a PIN.

 

[TMG51]

TMG51, I thought my info on risk management regarding credit card usage and safety inferred that I understood what your objection to increasing credit card security. Are you not referring to me, or did I actually miss the basis of your objection?

I'm not sure, maybe you did understand my objection. But as your post dealt with the need for change I wanted to again point out that I don't disagree there's a need, I disagree with the current approach.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Something new to report on the subject:

When I was working, I used to have to stop for gas three times a week.  Now that I'm retired, but not yet on the road, I only have to fill it up twice a month.

I stopped today for gas, first time in two or three weeks.  Instead of authorizing the sale when I swiped my card gas card, a message came up telling me to enter my five digit zip code.  I wouldn't authorize the sale until I did.

Regards
John

 

[Vagabound]

(Off Grid 24/7) ... My solution is to have a rechargeable pre-paid credit card, that I can keep only slightly over what I'm planning on spending in. ...

- and –

(Canine) ...
To the best of my knowledge there is no such thing as a prepaid "credit" card. Let's call them prepaid cards. They have varying degrees of protection depending on the issuer. Prepaid cards are fairly new to the market with lots of variances in the cards. Some prepaid cards act more like a credit card and some act more like an expensive debit card. Most act more like debit cards. Some are FDIC protected and some aren't. Some charge activation fees and some don't. Most charge a load up fee when you put more money on the card. Some are chipped and some aren't- get a chipped one! Some provide fraud protection and some don't. Some have perks and some don't. If you are getting a prepaid to increase your level of consumer protection, shopping around to find one that provides the most protection within your financials needs/wants will increase that protection. ...

Reviving a thread from 2015.  Maybe we need to revive the old term "charge card", as in "prepaid charge card". Or maybe not ... even though "charge" didn't mean credit originally, I think the two words became synonymous.

If someone were interested in learning more about these prepaid credit/not-credit cards:

1.  What exactly are they called as a group?

2.  Considering Canine’s comments, is anyone aware of a good review that compares different cards?

Thanks,

Vagabound