AN EXPERT mechanic has revealed a mistake you should never make while at a petrol station.
Scotty Kilmer took to his YouTube channel to warn drivers against the major blunder.
Scotty Kilmer warned drivers about a petrol station scam that could cost them dearlyYouTube
Scotty, who has over 50 years of experience in the motors industry, said: “There’s a thing called pump switch going on at gas stations.
“Do not fall for it.”
This is a scam that stings motorists for cash when using pay-at-pump petrol stations, where you load a certain amount of money into the pump and then use up what you need.
Scotty explained that the sneaky trick involves other drivers offering to put petrol in your car for you in order to trick you into putting your card details into the payment system.
They then secretly fail to fully replace the pump to end the transaction and wait for you to drive off, before filling up other cars on your card for a small fee.
Pump switching is currently more of an issue in the US, where gas station attendants filling your car for you is common practice.
However, a major change to pay-at-pump services in the UK could expose drivers to the crime.
Previously, you would load a £1 reservation fee onto the machine and then use up to £99.
The deposit would then be returned to your account once the transaction was finished.
However, Visa and Mastercard changed the way this service is provided in 2021.
Now, the machine charges you £100 and the difference between that fee and what you use is returned after the transaction.
This would allow crooks to pump switch and make a significant profit from people who are just topping up with £15 or £20-worth of fuel.
Social media commenters were stunned by the revelation.
One wrote: “It’s a dangerous world full of scams out there.”
Another added: “If you want a job done right, do it yourself, nobody is pumping my gas for me.”
It comes after an EV owner revealed why buying an electric car is just not worth it.
Meanwhile, a security report has warned that terrorists could hack self-driving cars and use them for attacks.