Petrol card payments held up

2008-08-27 22:09

Melissa Nel

Cape Town - Don't get annoyed with pump attendants if your petrol card payment takes longer than usual.

The Payments Association of South Africa, which regulates all banking transactions, has limited petrol card payments to R350 per transaction in an effort to combat fraud and overspending.

Peter Noke, national director of the SA Petroleum Retailers' Association, said any spending above the limit has to be approved by the bank first. It could take a couple of minutes and he asked motorists to be patient.

"We receive complaints about stolen, cloned and misused petrol cards every day," Noke said. "It's not the trader's fault if the transaction is delayed."

Peter Morgan, chief executive of the Fuel Retailers Association, also said that the limit has nothing to do with the owners of petrol stations.

According to him, banks do not prescribe how clients have to identify themselves to prove that a petrol card belongs to them.

"However, if the situation looks suspicious, the petrol station owner can take action."

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