Tesco has explained why certain customers might notice a £120 transaction appearing on their bank statements when using the Pay at Pump facility at its petrol stations. The supermarket giant clarified that this is a temporary pre-authorisation to confirm sufficient funds, not the actual amount debited.
How Pay at Pump Works
Numerous Tesco branches throughout the UK have petrol stations, allowing shoppers to refuel their cars either before or after doing their grocery shopping. When using the Pay at Pump facility, Tesco applies a temporary £120 pre-authorisation to verify available funds. Motorists can purchase up to £120 worth of fuel via Pay at Pump, with payment required by card, as contactless payments are not supported.
Tesco states that all UK-registered chip and PIN cards are accepted at Pay at Pump locations, with the exception of Visa Electron. On its website, Tesco clarifies: "If your account balance is under £120, your card issuer should respond with the lower amount they'll allow, and the fuel pump screen will show the value you can fill up to."
Partial Authorisations and Potential Issues
Some card issuers might not allow partial authorisations below £120. If this happens, Tesco advises: "Please try another payment card." While customers should only be billed for their actual fuel purchase, Tesco recognises that occasionally a £120 charge may appear on bank statements due to delayed balance updates by the card issuer.
Tesco added: "There may be a small number of occasions where your card issuer doesn't update your balance in real time. We'll only ever charge you for the value of the fuel you've purchased, but if you do have concerns, please talk to your bank for further details."
Payment Methods Accepted
The supermarket giant also confirmed that all contactless payment cards are accepted at its kiosks for transactions up to £100, although contactless payments are not available at Pay at Pump. Additionally, fuelGenie, UK Fuels, Keyfuels (purple card only), and Allstar are all accepted as payment methods at Tesco petrol station kiosks.
