Short Fueling Tricks At Petrol Stations

[Ranjan Sharma]

Originally Posted by thedreamcatcher

I generally ask them to put it on auto and take their hands off. But, not at all times. I must pay more attention the next time

I used to do this initially but lately they have started hiring 'Gundas' and 'Rowdies' as attendants. I don't understand where do they get so many Rowdies in Bangalore from. Don't forget all the commercial drivers (Auto,Bus,Cabs).

All 'Namma Bengaluru' fans, please excuse. This is ONLY about the Rowdies and no offence on any BHPIAN or their relatives/friends

[scopriobharath]

Whenever i Go to the Fuel Station other than my regular one, I do the following

• Turn of the Engine
• Unlock the Fuel Door
• Step out of the Car
• Stand close the tank
• The attender comes over and asks for the quantity of fuel.
• I ask him if there is auto cutoff in his pump. Most cases Yes then fill tank. In cases where anser is No, I ask him to fill for an amount and ask him to take his hand off the Filler Gun.
• I repeat the same three times and lock my eyes on the meter
• I keep my hand over the Filler cap and ask him to wait till the meter shows 000.
• I ask him to remove the hand.
• I dont respond to anyone at the pumps, be it credit card, fuel card, Cash, car care products, Tyre Pressure, beggars, Other humans asking details about car / Mileage etc.
• I just show my hand indicating them to stop talking or distract my attention till my Fuel is filled while my eyes are locked on the meter.

They take advantage of the Basic fact that Educated people look at the face / meet eye to eye during a conversation. when eyes are off the meter, the play their game. I make it a point to answer them in a single "No" without looking at their Faces. As soon as you do this, they walk away, understanding that I cannot be cheated.

If i am really facinated by the product that he selling, I pull over after filling and enquire on the product.

I always Pay in Cash. Pumps ask the method of payment. I answer "Cash" without loosing sight of the meter count. They cannot argue with Cash. they can make some cock 'n' bull story for Credit card, like they dont have facility, machine is down, this brand not accepted etc, trying to distract you. If i say Cash they cannot argue by telling "We dont accept cash". "We dont accept 500 Rs Notes" etc. at least not till date.

[yogeshnaik]

At Shell fuel pumps, starting with Namaskaara, after re-fuelling starts, I am asked for the oil change and shopping at their station. I observed carefully, but found the guys there are genuine. Fuel is also pure for sure.
Sadly the fuel costs more at Shell now a days. I found Indian Oil at St. Marks road is good.

[sbraj]

Great post scopriobharath.

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

They take advantage of the Basic fact that Educated people look at the face / meet eye to eye during a conversation.

Exactly. This is the trick.

[scopriobharath]

Another word of caution for distraction. I faced the same yesterday.

I have a stock 2007 Santro Limited Edition. I went to fuel at some pump in Chennai. I told him to fill petrol for 500/-. I noticed that some other attenders were focusing their eyes on me. I became alert. There were in uniform and came near my car and started praising the car of its looks, maintenance, and started asking questions about the car like how i could maintain it so well, what is the mileage etc. The attender who filled was standing close to the meter waiting for a chance to reset it. I just smiled, without loosing sight of the meter.

Lessons Learnt:

• I am a stupid common Man (No Offense meant. Quoted from Kamal Hassan's Tamil Movie Unnai Pol Oruvan)
• I Dont Drive any Supercar Imports
• I Drive one of India's most common cars seen on the road.
• I have an average car maintenance and not spick and span like out of an Auto Spa.

Caution:

Please dont get carried away if they praise your car. It is just to play some trick. They just want to drag you in some conversation. These guys know much more than what they pretend to know.

Mates: My attitude saved me 50Rs/- worth of Fuel.

[DRIV3R]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Whenever i Go to the Fuel Station other than my regular one, I do the following

• Turn of the Engine
• Unlock the Fuel Door
• Step out of the Car
• Stand close the tank
• The attender comes over and asks for the quantity of fuel.
• I ask him if there is auto cutoff in his pump. Most cases Yes then fill tank. In cases where anser is No, I ask him to fill for an amount and ask him to take his hand off the Filler Gun.
• I repeat the same three times and lock my eyes on the meter
• I keep my hand over the Filler cap and ask him to wait till the meter shows 000.
• I ask him to remove the hand.
• I dont respond to anyone at the pumps, be it credit card, fuel card, Cash, car care products, Tyre Pressure, beggars, Other humans asking details about car / Mileage etc.
• I just show my hand indicating them to stop talking or distract my attention till my Fuel is filled while my eyes are locked on the meter.

They take advantage of the Basic fact that Educated people look at the face / meet eye to eye during a conversation. when eyes are off the meter, the play their game. I make it a point to answer them in a single "No" without looking at their Faces. As soon as you do this, they walk away, understanding that i cannot cheat.

If i am really facinated by the product that he selling, I pull over after filling and enquire on the product.

I always Pay in Cash. Pumps ask the method of payment. I answer "Cash" without loosing sight of the meter count. They cannot argue with Cash. they can make some cock 'n' bull story for Credit card, like they dont have facility, machine is down, this brand not accepted etc, trying to distract you. If i say Cash they cannot argue by telling "We dont accept cash". "We dont accept 500 Rs Notes" etc. at least not till date.

Nice set of tips there.

And i think you wanted to type "that i cannot be cheated" there !

[raju2512]

Now a new way of fleecing .

Many petrol bunks in Chennai introduced nitrogen a few months ago & promos were done (like get free nitrogen for Rs1000 & above etc.,). For the next few weeks the refill was free. Now a few pumps demand Rs.40 to check and refill.

Hook you on to something with false promises and make you pay for it later.

[aargee]

Guys, pls beware of the HP petrol pump next to Guru residency in Mysore; 2 days back, I stated clearly to make a full tank & he deliberately filled for 3 litres & just by my stare he asked back if he needs to fill the tank. I just Thanked him, paid for 3 lts & drove towards another pump.

[scanD]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Another word of caution for distraction. I faced the same yesterday.

I have a stock 2007 Santro Limited Edition. I went to fuel at some pump in Chennai. I told him to fill petrol for 500/-. I noticed that some other attenders were focusing their eyes on me. I became alert. There were in uniform and came near my car and started praising the car of its looks, maintenance, and started asking questions about the car like how i could maintain it so well, what is the mileage etc. The attender who filled was standing close to the meter waiting for a chance to reset it.....

I'm wondering what could they try next? What if they employ tactics like:
1) throwing (passing) something to an attendant on the far side and that object accidentally hits the car. Our natural reaction would be to check for damage.. isn't it? Even a harmless object like a rubber bush/washer would do their job
2) Wind resulting in some paper/bill to accidentally fall inside the car (or on scooter floor) and they try to bend and reach for it.
3) A bill/paper gliding over the bonnet/windscreen and one of them attempting to grab it .. resulting in some thud sounds!!

Looks like #2 can somehow be managed but I would find it very difficult to control the instinctive reaction in case of 1 and 3 .

If such techniques haven't already been attempted.. i hope none of those attendants are reading this thread.

[sbraj]

Originally Posted by scanD

1) throwing (passing) something to an attendant on the far side and that object accidentally hits the car. Our natural reaction would be to check for damage.. isn't it? Even a harmless object like a rubber bush/washer would do their job
2) Wind resulting in some paper/bill to accidentally fall inside the car (or on scooter floor) and they try to bend and reach for it.
3) A bill/paper gliding over the bonnet/windscreen and one of them attempting to grab it .. resulting in some thud sounds!!

Looks like #2 can somehow be managed but I would find it very difficult to control the instinctive reaction in case of 1 and 3 .

If someone else is in the car, then they will take able to care of these situations. Otherwise, better to close all the windows to prevent them from reaching inside (also theft).

All these situations have potential for arguments, suspicion. Doubtful whether they would attempt as these cannot be done indiscreetly like casual chat. Nevertheless, best solution is not to alone to such fuel stations.

[scopriobharath]

I am Paranoid

I always use the car AC and so windows are always closed and locked (power windows).

In unknown pumps I lock the car using remote locking if i am alone. this takes exactly one second to lock and another second to unlock.

I am accompanied by parents / spouse who stay seated in the car in 99 out of 100 occassions of refuelling so I eliminate the chance of theft.

O.T: This is OT with respect to fuelling but in sync with cheating techniques used. I got a call on my mobile, claiming to be from Airtel, to verify my name and adress. I plainly told them to come home produce their ID and i will provide them all details. They bluntly hung up the phone. This is a clear case of cheating.

[FanaticOnWheels]

The IOC bunk on lb road, adyar, chennai is full of crooks. I went there today morning to fill petrol for 150. I told the attended in both English and Tamil the exact amount I wanted him to fill. He started, and then, blocked my view and started asking, "sir, cash or card?" I replied, cash and kept my eyes fixated on the meter. He tried blocking again and asked "oh, so no card ah sir?" I mean, if I say I am paying by cash, isn't it obvious that I am not paying by card? He then stopped at 50/-. I realized his trick, and took out 50 rs and handed it over. He shrugged, said that the meter got switched off, let mr start it again. He turned on some switch and the meter showed 0 again, and he filled for a little over 100.

All this happened at 7 in the morning. Can't believe they start their mornings this way.

[scopriobharath]

FanaticOnWheels - It is good that you stopped them, paid 50 else they would started cheating. Good Man. As soon as they stop, we can pull out of the fuel-station and drive to another pump couple of kms away. At least in chennai, in most areas in the city, there are fuel pumps at every 3 km radius, so we should be able to drive to a nearby pump and refuel.

[FanaticOnWheels]

Yeah. It's irritating though. The way they start their day. This pump is always looking at ways to cheat people.

[sbraj]

Originally Posted by FanaticOnWheels

The IOC bunk on lb road, adyar, chennai is full of crooks.
...
All this happened at 7 in the morning. Can't believe they start their mornings this way.

Spreading the word is the only way of countering them.