Getting fuel on the water

[Rinker85]

Today I had to stop at a marina for some fuel. I had them put $20.00 in the boat. An hour later I looked at my account online and found out I was charged $ 250.00. I drove back to the marina to find out what happened. They said the pump at the dock will automatically do a pre authorization of $250.00 and it would come off my card the next day.

​Has anyone ever heard of such a large amount being held on there bank card?

 

[MH Hawker]

no while it may be common, id never deal with them again

 

[Redfred1]

On the same order; stopped at a gas station to fill up.I handed the clerk my card and told her the pump#; etc. She told me I had to prepay $100; they would credit my account in 24hrs. if I overpaid. Got my card and left!

 

[oldjeep]

Pretty normal, it is typically $75 at land based stations and I've seen as high as $125 . Unless you are running right up on your limit who cares? The auth will change to an actual charge amount in a couple days. If it really bothers you then pay cash.

 

[JoLin]

<deleted>

 

[dingbat]

Never heard of such a thing. Never seen a preauthorization on any transaction.

What annoys me is the $75 shut off limit. Four trips to the cashier to fill up.

 

[sam92teg]

My first post!!! Just curious, are the prices similar to a gas station or do they inflate them and by how much? I am new to boating and this forum. I need 3 posts till I can attach imagaes.

 

[oldjeep]

Never heard of such a thing. Never seen a preauthorization on any transaction.

What annoys me is the $75 shut off limit. Four trips to the cashier to fill up.

The $75 is the pre auth

 

[DeepCMark58A]

My first post!!! Just curious, are the prices similar to a gas station or do they inflate them and by how much? I am new to boating and this forum. I need 3 posts till I can attach imagaes.

It is a little more typically but many of the taxes are not added to the cost because it is off road fuel usage.

 

[Rinker85]

My first post!!! Just curious, are the prices similar to a gas station or do they inflate them and by how much? I am new to boating and this forum. I need 3 posts till I can attach imagaes.

Here in Minnesota gas on the lake or river is usually double the price as it is on land. It was $4.99 last night.

 

[dingbat]

The $75 is the pre auth

Could be, but never see it on my charge account.

Once the attendant overrides whatever it is that allows me to continue, the transaction is posted as the final purchase value.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Never heard of such a thing. No way I am leaving my hard earned money with anyone for 24 hours, Family members included. I know that fuel costs at the Marinas here in Ontario are higher than land stations. Something about more taxes that can be returned at tax time.I have no idea how much more because my first time paying much more on the water was the last time.

 

[GA_Boater]

The same thing happens when you use a card on dry land. Why the fuss?

 

[oldjeep]

Here in Minnesota gas on the lake or river is usually double the price as it is on land. It was $4.99 last night.

Double the cost and twice as likely to have water in it

 

[ondarvr]

Pre-authorizations are common on many transactions, even ones you have no idea about, and you won't see them on any statement because they never go through. If you check your account it will be listed while it's in effect though, but you need to call and have them look it up.

 

[Rinker85]

The same thing happens when you use a card on dry land. Why the fuss?

​This never happens to me on dry land. And the fuss is I can't afford to have $250.00 missing from my account for 48 hours.

 

[dwco5051]

It is a little more typically but many of the taxes are not added to the cost because it is off road fuel usage.

In Pennsylvania the distributor pays the same state tax on fuel that is delivered to marinas. At the end of the year the department of transportation transfers that money to the Fish and Boat Commission based on how much gas was used for boats. Since a large percentage of boats in PA are trailered and fill at local gas stations trying to estimate how much is complicated. For those of you have boats registered in PA now you know why when you register they ask how many gallons of fuel you used in the little box. Part of the formula.

 

[JASinIL2006]

I bought gas in Sault Ste. Marie, ON last week and stopped at a station that required me, at the pump, to select the amount of $$ I would pre-authorize to have my account charged before filling up. I could tell it to get pre-authorization in increments of $20, up to $200. If I filled up and the cost was less than the amount I requested, my account was credited back for the unused amount.

This was at a chain of stations I've seen up there... I think the name was Mack or something like that.

Never have encountered the pre-authorization selection in the States, although I'm sure that gets done behind the scenes and I just don't know about it...

 

[H20Rat]

Almost every gas station does this, it is just up to your bank/credit card to show (or hide) it. Very few, if any, credit cards actually show the pre-auth charge. If you use a bank card though, that money is technically out-of-service for the length of time it takes to disappear.

Think about it, if the pump didn't pre-authorize, you could use any old or invalid credit card and there is absolutely no way to stop it. The authorization is what makes sure the credit card is actually valid, and you have enough remaining balance to actually fill your tank.

 

[wahlejim]

I have lots of experience with credit card payments between working in hotels and gas stations in my college years. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind.

There is a difference between debit and credit cards. If you can do so responsibly, always use credit cards at gas stations and hotels. Sign up for a rewards cards and get paid to use their card. They also come with much more fraud protection and consumer services (ie roadside assistance like AAA, rental car insurance, etc, depending on the card)

The reason for credit cards has to do with authorizations. It is not coming out of your pocket and they are not holding onto your money with credit cards. It is basically just saying "I am authorizing you to charge up to but not to exceed XXX.XX amount"

Whatever is not charged is returned. Since it is only on your line of credit, you won't miss that money unless you are right at your limit. Credit card Authorizations are usually released after the vendor batches their transactions for the day. Should be within 24 hours, 48 hours if it is a ma and pa place that may not do it every day.

Debit cards are on an entirely different system. Never authorize a debit card. If you have a debit card, pay cash. It is not unheard of for debit card authorizations to be held for 1-2 weeks! If you are in a pinch, tell them to charge the debit card for a specific amount and pump that amount like a cash transaction. They all have the capability to do it, it just takes 2x as long and more work on their end. If you are told no, talk to a manager and they will make it happen.

Back to the OP, marinas will increase the authorization to $250 because of the cost of fuel at a marina, usually an 80-125% markup from the nearest gas station on land. Why? Because lakefront property isn't cheap and they have bills to pay. Can you imagine the big cruisers filling up their 80 gallon tanks $75 at a time with $5/gal fuel? Keep in mind each transaction costs the marina money so they want to minimize the number of authorizations. $250 seems very reasonable for a pre-authorization at the marina.