PHILADELPHIA - Amid rising gas prices, some drivers may also be in danger of an overdraft fee just for fueling their tank.
Visa and MasterCard have raised the amount a gas station can hold when people pay with a credit or debit card to $175, up from $125.
Andy Lafond, a professor of accounting at La Salle University, said this could particularly impact debit card users who don’t have enough money in their account to process a hold for the new amount which could even trigger an overdraft fee.
“For people that have enough money in their account, or who have enough credit, it doesn’t impact them at all,” Lafond explained. “The people that get hurt are those that live paycheck to paycheck.”
Lafond said more than 60% of the country lives paycheck to paycheck, according to an early 2022 report from LendingTree.
He said to keep in mind many gas stations won’t apply the hold if you pay at the register.
“So the recommendation would be to walk in to the cashier and buy your $40. That way the attendant will only authorize you for $40 and your account won’t get hit for $175,” Lafond said.
Lafond says another work-around is paying with cash.
