[raghulsudheesh]

Originally Posted by raghulsudheesh

Hi,

I was travelling with my wife and a friend for the Christmas holidays from Kochi to Bangalore and from there to Kannur and back to Kochi in our Tata Zest. We reached Bangalore on December 23rd and started from there to Kannur on 25th. After we filled up fuel from Palakkad, we only had to refuel near Mysore. So I was watching out for a good Bharat Petroleum outlet and I came across Nataraj Fuel Point on Hunsur Road at Hinkal, Mysore. I had always been a loyal customer of BP for all the good experience I have had with them.

My car had the Kerala Registration and the employees could easily make out I am not from that part of the country. I asked them to fillup the tank full in Hindi and a senior employee standing there directed so to another junior employee and he set the meter zero and started refueling. Suddenly he stopped at 300 rs and asked for the money. I said I asked to fill the tank full and not just for 300 rs. Then another employee comes and asks if my car ignition is turned off (my car was already off as I never fill fuel with ignition on). I said yes and he started explaining why he asked so and all. In the meanwhile, the junior employee who was filling the tank stood obstructing our view to the meter and started refueling. My friend who was sitting in the back could notice that he did not set the meter zero when he started refueling the second time. The total bill came to 2450 and I was asked to pay the 300rs extra for the initial refueling they did. When I asked them in Hindi, why should I do that as they had not set the meter to zero, he replied back in Kannada and I could not understand what he said. I could make out that they were telling that they had set the meter zero and I am getting it wrong. I did not want to make an issue there as I wanted to get to Kannur before it gets dark and also I believed there was no point in talking with them and just collected the bills and resumed our journey.

I felt very disappointed and cheated and this actually spoiled our mood for sometime. I decided that these guys should be taken to task and this should not happen to another customer. Hence I am writing this post. I have written to Bharat Petroleum today with all the details and I have also sent them a bill copy. I will ensure that they give me back the money which they have robbed from me. Not just because I want the money back but also to ensure that this does not happen to another customer. The copy of the bill can be found below.

Attachment 1831137

BHPians,

Finally the issue has been settled! The issue has been resolved in four days time by the BP Team and the concerned outlet. A manager from Bharat Petroleum reached out both to me and the owner of the concerned fuel outlet on the day I raised the complaint and an explanation was sought from the dealer. Mr. Mahesh, the dealer/owner of the outlet called me the next day and discussed the issue and sought some time to check the CCTV visuals.

The next day, he called me and confirmed that there was some kind of dispute (between me and the staff) and the meter reading was not clear from the CCTV visuals and he agreed that there was some kind of fraud that happened from the side of the employees but none of them was accepting what had happened. He went on to explain that one of them have been dismissed from the service and he was willing to refund 300 rs to me. Mr. Mahesh was a thorough gentleman and never tried to defend what had happened and was willing to make good for the loss I had suffered.

However the attitude of the BP Manager was very unprofessional. She sent me an email stating that there has been no error but they will do a refund. I do not understand why they want to do a refund if there had been no error. And also she was not able to explain anything on the timings, if there was no error. As per the bill, Diesel worth Rs. 2450 was filled first and Diesel worth Rs. 300 was filled later, which was never the case and they could not explain why it was shown so in the bill. I felt her email to be very humiliating, to say the least. I am copying her email and my reply below (names removed).





I received no reply for my email but the refund happened today afternoon. Mr. Mahesh, the owner of the outlet, gave me a courtesy call and asked if I had received the amount. I wish BP had shown some courage to accept the wrong that had happened while initiating the refund. It would have only done them more good but I am thankful to both BP and Mr. Mahesh for dealing with this and giving the refund. My bank record showing the refund is available below.

[sumathindra]

My 2 cents on what I do:

1. I always get out of the car and stand near the meter and the fuel nozzle.
2. Never remove my eyes from the meter also ensuring to keep looking at the nozzle.
3. Many times the attendants ask for mode of payment and i just signal them to stop.
4. I never ever talk to them during this refueling process.

As a repercussion of the above many a times I see that they get frustrated and even at times ask me to pay while the filling is going on. I just do not react. Once after the filling I gave it back to him asking a simple question - "whats the hurry" I do not see anyone behind me to fill and then no words come from the joker!

This is one activity where I do not multitask

[Jaguar]

Originally Posted by raghulsudheesh

However the attitude of the BP Manager was very unprofessional. She sent me an email stating that there has been no error but they will do a refund. I do not understand why they want to do a refund if there had been no error.

For a large organization, it costs less to refund a small amount than investigating the issue. Think about it, if it is a one-off incident reported against the dealer, does it make sense to spend time and energy looking into the matter? And if the dealer is made to pay from his pocket, he will mend his ways and put more checks on his employees if the number of occurrences go up. Online shopping refunds, credit card billing issues etc are all dealt this way.

Most of the customers would be satisfied with a refund and continue the business relationship. In the long run, it works out cheaper for the companies to let go of the minority of the folks who are not statisfied. So unless it is a life-threatening matter or involves high-value amount or has reputational impact, there is no point losing sleep over it.

[raghulsudheesh]

Originally Posted by Jaguar

For a large organization, it costs less to refund a small amount than investigating the issue. Think about it, if it is a one-off incident reported against the dealer, does it make sense to spend time and energy looking into the matter? And if the dealer is made to pay from his pocket, he will mend his ways and put more checks on his employees if the number of occurrences go up. Online shopping refunds, credit card billing issues etc are all dealt this way.

I don't think that's the case over here. Because the fraud is evident from the timings on the bill. So I don't think they would even need any investigation to realise that a fraud has been committed. Above all, the Owner of the outlet itself has admitted that a fraud had taken place at the employee level. So things are very crystal clear in my case and I believe, I received only a deserved refund.

[Sarkar_ask]

Originally Posted by sumathindra

My 2 cents on what I do:

1. I always get out of the car and stand near the meter and the fuel nozzle.
2. Never remove my eyes from the meter also ensuring to keep looking at the nozzle.
3. Many times the attendants ask for mode of payment and i just signal them to stop.
4. I never ever talk to them during this refueling process.

Sumathindra has given a very good suggestion. I would also like to add on to this suggestion and share my story about what petrol pump guys generally do in Pune.

I was new at that time in Pune and I never had any prior fuel cheating experience as while I was in Kolkata nothing of this sort ever had happened to me. So, one day I went to a HP petrol pump for refueling and ask the petrol pump guy to do a full tank. He started fueling up my car and in the mean time another guy came and started talking to me after seeing that I had a WB registration plate on my car. By this time the first guy who was fueling up stopped at 300 rs and said it's done. I asked him in wonder that which 4 wheeler comes for a 300 rs fuel? It's not a scooty. Also told him again to do a full tank, but he said he heard 300 rs instead of full tank, though he heard me very clearly on first time itself. So, he started refueling and did a full tank but he didn't reset the fuel meter, so at the end he told me that my current reading + 300 rs I need to pay. I asked him that he didn't reset after 300 filling but he said he can give me receipt, I thought it was my mistake perhaps and maybe he was telling the truth (it was my first time). But my mistake was not to take that receipt I paid him the money and left but still I had a doubt in my mind that maybe I was cheated for 300 rs.

Next time also I visited them for refueling for a full tank and this time as well the same incident started to repeat, some other guy came to talk to me and the first guy who was fueling up stopped at 300 rs. he said "sir, 300 ka daal diya" (Sir, refilled for 300 rs). He was just waiting for me to shout again that I needed full tank and so that he could cheat me again. But I didn't say anything, rather I thanked him, paid him 300 rs and left. He couldn't believe himself and was still thinking how could I escape so easily.

So, from my experience I would like to share few tips while fueling up -

• Always get off your car at the fuel station and monitor all the activities closely. Don't keep sitting inside your car and ask for fuel.

• Check zero on their machine before he starts fueling up without a miss.

• Don't indulge in any small talk with the petrol pump guys till the refueling is complete.

• Strictly instruct pump guys not to touch the fuel pipe/nozzle when fueling is in progress. Tell him to set it to auto cut off.

• Always ask fuel for unusual amount like 2100 rs, 900 rs, 1350 rs or a full tank. Because they already manage to have preset receipts for common figures like 500 rs, 1000 rs, 2000 rs etc.

• If you ask for a full tank and they hear 200 then immediately pay it and leave and look for another pump. Because, those guys work as a team and they will try to cheat you anyhow, so best is to leave.

• Always ask for the receipt, the payment receipt as well as the one getting generated from the fuel dispenser machine.

P.s. Till date in Pune I have found Shell Petrol Pumps to be the most reliable ones.

[speedmiester]

Originally Posted by Sarkar_ask

So, from my experience I would like to share few tips while fueling up -

• Always get off your car at the fuel station and monitor all the activities closely. Don't keep seating inside your car and ask for fuel.

• Check zero on their machine before he starts fueling up without a miss.

• Don't indulge in any small talk with the petrol pump guys till the refueling isn't complete.

• Strictly instruct pump guys not to touch the fuel pipe/nosel when fueling up is in progress. Tell him to set it on auto cut off.

• Always ask fuel for unusual amount like 2100 rs, 900 rs, 1350 rs or a full tank. Because they already manage to have preset receipts for common figures like 500 rs, 1000 rs, 2000 rs etc.

• If you ask for a full tank and they hear 200 then immidiately pay it and leave and look for another pump. Because, those guys work as a team and they will try to cheat you anyhow, so best is to leave.

• Always ask for the receipt, the payment receipt as well as the one getting generated from the fuel dispenser machine.

P.s. Till date in Pune I have found Shell Petrol Pumps to be the most reliable one.

This scam is so well known that just raising your voice is sufficient for such scum bag attendents to accept their mistake and back off.
Once an attendent at the Petrol station near Cauvery Theatre tried to do this trick with me, I started to raise my voice and immediately they backed down and the manager came out to pacify me and reimbursed me.
Even the fuel companies are well aware of it and they take such complaints very seriously.

[Sarkar_ask]

Originally Posted by speedmiester

This scam is so well known that just raising your voice is sufficient for such scum bag attendents to accept their mistake and back off.

Actually me being new to Pune city was not so aware about this kind of fraud, hence they got me easily that time. Also, as I didn’t know the local language so I couldn’t argue with them properly perhaps. They understood easily that I was not from there and so became an easy prey for them. But that was the only time, I got their trick and now I also shout if I see they are trying to do something fishy.

P.s. Just for information- this incident happened to me at the hp Petrol pump which is located on the main road which comes from pune court and continues towards camp area. I don’t know what that exact location is called though. But it’s close to ‘Sangam park railway officers colony’. It has become a coco pump now.

[gamingstein]

Originally Posted by Sarkar_ask

Next time also I visited them for refueling for a full tank and this time as well the same incident started to repeat, some other guy came to talk to me and the first guy who was fueling up stopped at 300 rs. he said "sir, 300 ka daal diya" (Sir, refilled for 300 rs). He was just waiting for me to shout again that I needed full tank and so that he could cheat me again. But I didn't say anything, rather I thanked him, paid him 300 rs and left. He couldn't believe himself and was still thinking how could I escape so easily.

Hey, Thank you soo much. In my extensive years of driving, never did i face this sort of a challenge even once, until yesterday. Here in Lucknow, i went to a fuel station and gave my standard instruction to refuel the tank to the full capacity. The attendant did nod and started refuelling the tank while a few other attendants came to my car and started trying out various techniques for diverting my attention. And then, the guy who was filling my tank stopped the meter at 500/- and said "sir daal diya 500/- ka" (sir have filled fuel worth 500/-) while I had clearly asked for a tank full. This immediately reminded me of such posts I read recently on T-bhp and hence was aware of what's coming next. I kept my eyes fixated on the meter at that point as he continued fuelling it from 500/- onwards and finally stopped at 5650/- mark.
The other attendant who was trying to distract me then asked me to pay 5650 + 500 || in a harsh tone, i immediately corrected him that he continued refuelling from 500/- mark and did not reset, and that I am aware of such frauds that you guys try. He immediately asked the guy who operated the machine if he continued at 500/- and then put the blame on him, asking him to clarify if he did reset or not.

This is the petrol pump situated on the Lohia Path which is to the left when moving towards Chief Minister's residence. It was famous for its malpractices and was sealed by IOCL a few years back. Now it is re-opened and is a COCO (company owned company operated) version which technically means that IOCL itself is looking at the operations of this one (correct me if I am wrong here). I guess the staff here is the main culprit.
They also refused to add any points for this purchase; first they cited that "there is no such scheme of IOCL" and when confronted, started making excuses like "there is a scheme but this pump does not have the required machine" and later to - "the machine is in the back office and you need to go inside to claim your points."

One thing I am sure of is, that this time I was accompanied by 3 more family members in my car; had I been alone, they would have definitely argued and tried to force me to pay those 500/- extra!

[TrackDay]

Way before I started driving, I was informed about such practices by my elders. I have heard that some attendants fill from the previous meter reading. Say perhaps the car before you filled for INR 1000 and your are next and have asked for INR 3000. They continue from the previous reading which makes you get only fuel worth INR 2000. Hence I always ensure that I see the meter set to zero before any filling takes place. Also I never ask for 'full tank' and is usually for an approximate amount say like INR1500 / INR3000 / INR 5000.

To be honest though, I never felt in all these years of driving, never once did anyone try to cheat me. I usually fill from those big standard company operated pumps.

[unknowntrainer]

To be honest I haven't encountered any pumps these days that don't automatically reset to zero once the nozzle is removed.

Still, I have come across the scam mentioned a couple of times where they fill petrol till 500 and say done. I have always paid the said amount and simply driven off to another petrol pump just to avoid any confrontation.

I even remember an instance where I was driving off and the pump attendant was like "Saar, you said full tank". I simply replied with not from this pump and left ��

[adisan]

Most of the tricks attempted by the petrol pump staff to cheat us are already noted down in this thread. One additional trick I encountered at a petrol pump in Tirupati was: the staff asked me to park my car perpendicular to the dispensing machine, so that I would have no way of seeing the meter. I immediately got out of the car and kept watching the meter.

Additional steps I usually follow:
1. If the staff say 'done' after filling fuel for a lower amount than requested, just pay that amount and drive away.
2. For cash transactions, when the staff are counting the balance amount to be paid, ensure to count after receiving the money.
3. If someone comes ahead and offers free newspapers or advice, become doubly vigilant. There is a big chance that some kind of cheating is being attempted.
4. For the first few visits at any petrol pump, get out of the car and watch the meter.
5. Even if a regular visitor at a petrol pump, remain alert each time.
5. Finally, once a cheating attempt is observed at a petrol pump, NEVER go to that pump again.