Do you have prepay by-laws where you live regarding filling up at the pump?

[Locut0s]

Some time ago they enacted by-laws here where you have to prepay for all gas before filling up at the pump. Someone else's post in the Lounge got me wondering how wide spread these types of laws are. You have to select a dollar or volume amount and prepay at the pump (via debit or having your CC preauthorize for a set amount) before you are allowed to fill up. This was spurred by the deaths of a couple of gas station attendants in gas and run events.

[exboyfil]

1. If you put gas station workers in a double bind

by expecting them to stop drive offs at the threat of compensating for the loss or losing their job, then you have to have this type of law to make it an equally competitive basis and take such a decision away from a minimum wage worker. It is awful that an individual is hurt or killed for a minimum wage job, and it is even more awful that the person is desperate enough for such a job to put them in that situation.

[Locut0s]

2. I agree 100%...

I was wondering how universal these laws were. Do you have them where you live?

[exboyfil]

5. Not to my knowledge

but every pump I see (even driving to Florida from Iowa for Christmas) has a prepay requirement. In Georgia or Tennessee they have a considerable penalty posted for drive offs with a stern looking state trooper photo on the pump. The situation is horribly inconvenient for those who don't have credit or debit cards. Since they mention the penalty I suspect they don't have the law. The penalty makes the gas stealer even more desperate if confronted.

[LeftofObama]

3. There are about 10-15 gas stations here, and I think all but 1 are prepay. n/t

[Jenoch]

4. I am unaware of any laws in Minnesota

requiring prepayment of gasoline. However I do know that in some areas of the Twin Cities it is common for all the pumps at gasoline stations. Other places only require prepayment on the outside lanes of pumps where driving off is easier. I know a lot of fuel is sold via credit card which is swiped at the pump. I guess this is a form of prepayment but you don't have to guess as to how much fuel your car needs to fill it up.

[Bluenorthwest]

6. I don't know, we don't pump our own gas here, so I pay as the attendant asks which seems

to vary but I never think about it. I know my grocery store has a pre pay policy, got to buy it before you braise it.

[Shrike47]

7. Not around Eugene, Oregon.

Of course, in Oregon you can't pump your own gas.

[Fla_Democrat]

8. Only for cash sales

Debit (and credit, according to the signs) are swipe and pump. The signs say that the lending institutions may place a hold, but the stores don't.

[Nite Owl]

9. New York

When I lived downstate we had to prepay but upstate we don't.