Pumped more than I asked for

I received a call today from Exxon customer relations.

I received more than I was expecting with this outcome.

I was hoping for acknowledgment that what happened shouldn't and that
the employees would be instructed to pay more attention to what they
are doing.

Based on the conversation I had that had occurred and I am being
compensated for my troubles.

i have to ask if this is a joke? because seriously its not even $5. I
could see if it was like $10 . And you got & used the gas !

Yes it is their fault and I can't believe he couldn't refund you your
money, but it is $4.XX and you got the gas. I would chalk this one up
and be done with it. I know for me the time spent trying to get $4.XX
back would not be worth it.

People working at a gas station make like $6-$7 an hour. They work
long hours, hard shifts, and they have endless responsibilties to
attend to. EX: stocking shelves, inventory, cig. counts, stocking
coolers, ringing customers, authorizing pumps, and dealing with irrate
customers.... If this was a problem for you, pay with a card at the
pump. Then pump what you want, and the attendent won't even be
involved in the transaction. You won't even ned to go inside the
store.

Maybe this will help in the future.

You're right, it's his mistake.
If you tell him 30.00, he shouldn't charge you for more. Thats the
amount you authorized!

The station should hire attendants that are competent at working the
pump. If there was a manager around, which the would have to have been
at some time, they should be able to adjust the charge.

You've got to be kidding. Give them back the $4.85 in gas and perhaps
you will get your refund. Look at it this way: if that is the worst
thing that happened to you that day, it was a pretty good day!

Don't want to accuse him of stealing but is there a reason he could
not credit your acct at that time? Any place that has the ability to
charge your acct also has the ability to credit it. By his not even
offering this option to you makes me feel that this is not on the up
and up. Even if he does not have the ability to do this because a
manager has to key it in, he should have told you this.

I would be ticked off too.

It's people like you that are part of the problem and not part of the
solution.

I don't care if it was 10 cents over what you had asked for...gas is
more expensive than ever and it is not coming down in price any time
soon...so paying any amount over the due amount is abominable!

This is not the same as paying 'over' for anything else by 'mistake'
this is so much more, when paying for gas.
It doesn't matter whether you filled up in NJ, PA or any other
lower-priced gas states.One should not pay one cent over than the
price you agreed to pay at the pump that stated the price.

It's good you put the name and location of this gas station in your
letter. If it's a scam, as some have suggested, then perhaps someone
else will see it here.
I once had an attendant put six gallons into a five gallon
container.
If you ask for thirty dollars worth, that's what you should get. No
questions. If the attendant offers you a solution you don't like,
there's no reason for you to accept it. I would contest the charge on
my credit card, and tell them why. It would be good if you got
something in writing from the attendant to back it up...if you could.

That's why I always pay with cash at the gas station. In oregon we
can't pump our own gas either, however, it has happened that the guy
put more gas that I needed. Not only did I not have money to pay for
the extra gas at that moment, but I didn't pay him, because it's
something I didn't ask for.

Yes, he will use the extra gas eventually and the $4.85-interest-free
loan to ExxonMobil probably will not break him. No, it is not a lot
of money (although I don't see anyone below offering to send him $4.85
to prove the point).

So what? It is his decision how much gas to purchase. If he wants to
buy $30 worth and have to fill up again a little sooner, that is his
decision to make. The attendant filled his order wrong and the excess
should be free as a matter of good customer service. I am willing to
believe the attendant may not have been given the tools to correct the
problem immediately by issuing a refund, either in credit or cash.
However, that is management's problem, not the customer's. Either the
station owner or ExxonMobil should make the situation right -- and,
for that matter, throw in something extra for the customer's trouble.

You're eventually going to need the additional gas. And obviously
your tank wasn't full, so what's the big deal, regardless of the
dollar amount. Again, you'll need the gas eventually. This is s
frickin stupid letter dude!

It's amazing the thing you can learn here. I honestly had no idea that
you couldn't pump your own gas in NJ.

Okay, here's my two cents. I know that less than $5.00 may not seem
like a lot, but I know there have been more than a few times I
couldn't have gone a dollar over the amount. Right now, I literally
search for loose change under my bed, pockets, and the floor of my car
for gas money. I didn't qualify for any grants this semster and my
loans only covered housing and books. I know that's not the situation
here, but I can't help but be sympathetic because of that.

The attendant probably honestly made a mistake, but I know that I
probably would have been annoyed if it happened to me.

I completely agree with the OP. If $30.00 is all he asked for, then
that's all they should of pumped.
Some people are on a tight budget, especially around the holiday
season. $4.85 may not seem like a lot to some people, but to others it
actually is.

Hello TRNJ. I enjoy visiting from Philly for the cheap gas and cheaper
wine. I cannot agree with one of the responants that the $4.85 is the
price we sometimes pay for the convenience of getting our gas pumped
for us. If it's mandatory in Jersey then it's not a "convenience" I
can control; and quite frankly, in Philly I don't have to wait for the
attendant. I put the thingy in the tank, click the hold down jigger
and get back into my car.

More importantly, I just bought a house which has brought new meaning
to "living paycheck to paycheck"! That overage of gas breaks my
budgets, causing me to get an overdraft of $30 thereby costing me
twice as much for gas. So that 2.88 per gallon of gas has now gone to
5.76 a gallon (where am I, London?!?!)

I'm from NJ. Imagine my surprise when I emigrated following
graduation from college to a self serve state. I have since lived
outside NJ the majority of my life, but I have gone back frequently to
visit. Did it take a bit of getting used to someone else pumping my
gas when I return? Yes. I still get out and open the flap, and
frequently put the handle back and put the cap back on.

I really don't see what all the hubbub is here. Look at all the
products we buy where you have to stand in line. If I want milk at my
local store, there is no self serve. I get in line. At some stores
they have self serve, and if I want to be unsociable and fast I go to
the self serve. Otherwise, I get in line. I am not demanding all
stores have self serve.

I now live NEAR NJ. What I find is that NJ has the lowest gas prices
in this area. This is because the taxes have been kept low. I could
care less that it takes me an extra 3 minutes to fill up, when I am
saving .20 a gallon. At 18 gallons, that is $3.60. That is an hourly
rate of 20x3.60, or $72. That, to me, is worth the wait.

I found a piece on this topic:

http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-schaeffer090803.asp

"They told me to call SpeedPass to have it credited but could not give
me a ph#. I lost the # I had for SpeedPass. I did try calling
ExxonMobile (Citicards) because thats the card tied to my SpeedPass.

Citi could not help, but the telephone number for SpeedPass customer
service (which is where the attendant said to call) is on their
website. If you haven't called already, here it is:

"For other questions and comments, you may contact Speedpass Customer
Service by completing the form below or calling toll free
1-87-SPEEDPASS (1-877-733-3727)"

1-877-733-3727. Have you called? Isn't that what the attendant told
you to do to get your credit?

I'm glad i'm retired that way i can spend time reading all the funny
replies on this site .

I tried getting through this mess, but have since given up. In one of
his responses, Manny said the operator asked if he could pump in the
$4.85 at no cost to him. But intelligent(?) Manny said 'No.' A
mistake was made, the operator offered to rectify it, but in his
infinite wisdom, Manny decided to make a big deal out of it! I think
he's a first-class trouble maker.

I have to agree with the letter. Though not necessarily the way the
writer is going about trying to solve the issue.

If I say I'm going to pay for X dollars worth of something and you
agree to that, we pretty much have a contract. If you inadvertently
give me Y dollars worth of that product, and you cannot retrieve the
difference in the amount of product then that's your problem, not
mine. I agreed to pay you X dollars, not Y.

Someone below posted, what if the guy had only enough cash for the gas
he wanted, and no other form of payment on him? What would they do?
I'm curious.

OK, curious myself, I looked this up. This law was put on the books
in 1949 when it was thought that having untrained individuals pumping
flamable liquids was dangerous.

The current govenor, Jon Corzine, tried to change the law recently and
allow self serve. This was met with more opposition than a proposed
1% rise in sales tax.

His reasoning was that it would lower the price of gas but many were
still concerned about the safety issue and that it would put thousands
out of work.

This is another appropriate place for me to say that Cash is King.

That the OP didn't pump this himself. NJ has a law that there is no
"Self-Service" gas. Everything is pumped by an attendant (don't ask
me why)

The OP had no control at all over this and as others have said, $1 or
$2, OK, I can see that happening accidentally. But you have to
seriously suffer a severe case of "Cranius Rectus" to go almost $5
over (unless, as others have suggested, the attendant was deliberately
trying to gouge.)

The thing that worries me is that it is relatively easy for a store to
write off that small an amount as an overage or as a customer
complaint, so who's to say that the attendant wasn't in the habit of
writing these off and pocketing the money for himself.

When you only make $6 an hour, an extra few bucks from every customer
can come in handy.

I have to say that I"ve changed my mind. If the attendant/gas station
aren't going to be responsible when they overpump (whether it's on
purpose or an accident doesn't really matter), then where is the
incentive to pay attention and pump correctly? The "shrug" type of
attitude the attendant seems to have had shows that it isn't a big
deal to him. And I agree with the poster one or two posts below me
who said that to let a pump go nearly $5 over is quite a decent amount
of time -- I don't know about you folks, but in Minnesota, there's a
sign at the pumps saying that state statute requires that the person
pumping gas be in close proximity to the the nozzle and pump, so as to
better supervise the process.

So I changed my mind: The station should eat the $5. Perhaps getting
his butt chewed out a couple of times will cause this attendant to be
more careful in the future.

I also think it's time for New Jersey to get with the program and let
people pump their own gas if they so choose.

On the one hand I agree that you shouldn't get something for nothing,
and gas is unique in that normally you'll need to fill up at least
weekly. So, most likely the OP will use the $4.85 in gas at some
point. HOWEVER, I just can't get on board with the fact that the
attendant "accidentally" went over by nearly $5. Either he was
completely not paying attention to the pump, or he entered the wrong
amount into a computer. Either way, it was the attendant's fault.
What also bothers me is the statement from some posters that "It's
only $5". The OP budgeted $30 for gas, no more no less. We have no
idea what his financial situation is, so we are not qualified to say
that he should just suck up the cost. What if the OP had written a
letter to his bank complaining of bounced checks or an overdrawn bank
account because of this incident? I'm able to leave at least a little
padding in my bank account, but some people aren't. What if that was
his last purchase prior to pay day and he cut it a little
close...Probably the OP is in neither of these situations, but we
don't know that. And neither did the attendant. A manager should
have been brought in to this situation so that they were aware of this
employees mistake. Most likely if anything could have been done to
rectify the situation they would know about it.

I agree with the OP. He couldn't pump his own gas because he can't. He
didn't ask for 34.85; he asked for 30. It's like the gas attendant
price gouged. What if this guy did this to every customer? "Oops,
sorry sir, I accidentally went over a dollar" "Ooops, I went over by
two dollars" etc. This can add up to a lot of money that customers did
not intend to pay.

I don't know why you guys aren't on the OP's side. I know it's just
five dollars, but what if the attendant at this gas station made a
regular habit of "accidentally" overpumping to score a few dollars. A
lot of people might not worry about one or two dollars; they think
it's just a mistake. How do we know that this is a way for the station
to scam more money?

I mean...it's hard to go over by five dollars on accident, in my
opinion, unless that pump is really fast. I just don't like the idea
of not being able to pump my own gas...

So I guess you're gonna have them take $4.85 worth of gas out of you
tank when they give you your credit, right?

give it back. Then it won't be your responsibility. This is a really
silly complaint. No, you didn't ask for it. But, you got it and
unless you are headed to the junkyard, you'll use it.

How far does $4.85 take you these days, 30 miles?

"I was given the name of the manager
of the station but it's not worth my time to go back there again."
Then it is not worth taking the time to write and read all these
letters. It seems to have been an honest mistake. Let it go, drive a
few more miles before refueling and enjoy life. You could be using
this time with your family. Life is too short to worry about the small
stuff.

Emanuel L.,
This is the way I understand it.
You authorized a purchase of $30.00.
While pumping it yourself it did not stop at $30.00 and you got $4.85
that you did not authopize but did end up paying for.
My guess is the attendent did not put in the correct amount to begin
with.
If all my assumptions are correct you paid for the gas, got the gas,
although it was more than what you approved, and probably won't be
getting a refund.
Stop back and let us know how it all shakes out.
BillR.

I live in Toronto where it gets really cold this time of year. I
always pump my own gas, this way if I go over then oops, silly me.
Really what would you have done if you had pumped it yourself and you
went over? I think that you would still be asking for a refund on the
overage amount.
Just be glad there are gas stations that still serve you, I can think
of one station in Toronto. Not one company, but one individual
station.

Seriously, grow up and get over yourself and stop crying about
something so stupid.

I agree with HarleyCat on this one. Yes, he made a mistake, but it
wasn't even $5. Suck it up, enjoy driving around an extra day or two
without having to get gas again.

Hi Im writing under another handle (dottiejean28) Who is my wife. I
worked for years as a gas attendant while going to school. If it's
cash it should be the responsibility of the pumper and should come out
of his check. It's not a huge blunder, it's under five dollars and
it's an easy mistake to make on a busy day working overtime with six
hundred customers at once. I once overpumped a guy by twenty dollars.
He probably forgot to set the pump and then caught it too late. So I
doubt that he's a crook. But if it's a speedpass, then they should
credit you for the $4.85 since they gave it to you against your
wishes. Even if by accident. Well, that's what the place I worked
for would have done, it was a little mom and pop garage with a gas
island. Just call the 800 number and I'm sure that it's going to be
reconciled. Take care and tell me what happens.

I am in COMPLETE agreement with you Manny. I would have asked for a
supervisor or write a letter like you did...actually was there a toll
free number you could have called? Thanks for the info on this service
station though! You can be sure I won't be filling up there.

Are the pumps in NJ set up for pre-pay? Here in Illinois some stations
make customers pre-pay an amount and when the amount is reached the
pump shuts off.

That gas station charges $2.93 currently. The Exxon up at Hooper on
the West side of 37 is much less and more competitive in their
pricing, you could consider going there sometimes.

They are mostly Indian with accents but I don't know if that is why he
didn't or couldn't hear, or comprehendd what you asked. They are
making only minimum wage and it's gas you are going to eventually use
anyway. This may have even saved you a trip for it. It would be unfair
to have them take it out of pocket for the mistake. I personally
wouldn't sweat such a small amount. It's not as if they charged you
$25 or more extra. Then I could be inclined to agree with you on this.

I'm going to go against the others. I think you are making a big deal
out of nothing. It's not like you're never going to need or use that
gas. The attendant made a mistake and mistakes happen. It's not like
he pumped your gas and spilled it and wanted you to pay for the
spilled amount.

First, you are wrong about one thing: cash, credit, SpeedPass.... it's
all the same.

If you were a cash customer and they overpumped, and you refused to
pay them... they'd call the police. While you might be able to
convince the police that it wasn't your fault, driving off without
paying the full amount is not something you want to do.

OK, but you DO have a point. You should not be responsible for their
overpumping.

The only way the can "correct" this is to siphon out the excess. They
aren't going to do that (excess out of spite) and I'm not sure that
it's legtal.

The answer to his question is: no, it's not OK. You can either take
back the gas I didn't ask for... or you can give me the excess gas for
free. Then, if he refuses, you ask to use the phone so YOU can call
the police. (Not that I recommend bothering the police, mind you).

Is $4.85 really going to break you before the NEXT time you've got to
get gas...probably in a few days anyways...

Before any of you say I should pump my own gas it is illegal in New
Jersey to pump your own gas.