TRICK 11: Two sides of price indicators
In this particular trick, manipulations are done by pump attendants who normally strike when motorists are preoccupied with other thoughts. Most times, pump attendants are so daring.
Motorists should be more careful with pumps that have two sides of price indicators—back and forth screen, displaying amount of money dispensed.
For several reasons, some of which are technical, each side of the screen could show a different price. For example, ₦5000 and the other screen could display about ₦4000.
If you requested to buy fuel worth ₦5000 and the a buyer from other side of the pump is also buying ₦5000 worth of fuel, if you are not watching close enough, a crafty attendant can dispense fuel worth ₦4000 and point to the other side pump, hoodwinking you into believing that he/she has dispensed the amount you required, meanwhile you have lost ₦1000 as the price indicator was for the other pump.
Now to counter these 11 tricks above, here are some of the counter-tricks or precautions to cut the cheating attendants
- Always, get off from your car, lock the vehicle and stand close to petrol tank and see the meter readings when buying fuel
- Check the meter reading after opening the petrol tank or before fueling starts and again at the very end.Keep a continuous watch at the meter reading and at the fueling person, throughout your turn.
- If you develop doubt over a particular petrol pump, then AVOID that particular petrol pump in the future like the plague. I have also seen that there are petrol pumps which do not indulge in such activities.
- Identify such pumps and try to fill from these pumps only In any case, don’t believe the attendants and NEVER EVER TAKE YOUR EYES FROM THE METER. Get it set to zero and do not take your eyes off till the last drop comes out of the nozzle.
- Ask the attendant firmly to keep his hands off the nozzle and wait for the auto cut-off to kick-in.Park the car a bit away from the machine and let the attendant stretch the pipe to your fuel lid.
- Ask him to hold the nozzle at certain height post he is done fueling up the tank in order to allow the residual to flow in.Always check for zero before they start filling, even if the petrol pump is overcrowded.Reduce conversations with the fuel attendant, and if you must talk to him/her, please do it without taking your eyes off the meter for one second.
- Also make sure the meter is set at ₦0.00 before the attendants starts to fill up your tank/keg.Do not take your eyes off the meter till the last drop, don’t get distracted by counting the money you want to give him/her, wait till he/she is done dispensing the fuel. End the transaction right there, in case the meter is stopped for any reason. Do not hurry and always pay at the end of the transaction.
- Ask for a printed receipt every time, as far as possible.Always keep a watch on the attendant and on the meter.
- If you are suspicious about a certain fuel station, step out of your car and ask the attendant to move away from the dispenser while filling. If you still feel that he is cheating stop him from filling your tank and call the manager and lodge your complain. If nobody at the station admits their fraud or deny any assistance, reach out to DPR.
- As we visit the filling station today, always remember The Golden Rule: Never take your eyes off the meter.
By Daramola Babalola
As we visit the filling station today, always remember The Golden Rule: Never take your eyes off the meter
Have you must also have experienced similar attempts to cheat. Do you have any special experience to share?
Daramola Babalola is a political analyst and News Editor, He can be reached at [email protected]
