Since a recent post on “Preventing fuel card Fraud“, we decided to do a follow-up with a Q&A on whether there is still value in using fuel and fleet cards instead of just using a credit card!
What would we describe as the value of using, for an individual vehicle owner or small business owner with one vehicle, a petrol card instead of just his credit card?
The main purpose of a fleet card is to assist clients to manage risk and to provide detailed reporting in order to monitor and control the running cost of a vehicle.
Is it not safer to use the credit card with pin protection?
A Fleet card gets issued to a specific vehicle (not an individual) and can only be used for vehicle-related purchases for the vehicle described on the card. There is no pin, however, Fleet Card transactions are authorised in real-time by the Standard Bank Fleet Management System whereby over 30 validations are performed before a transaction is authorised. Some of these validations include
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- the validation of the type of purchase (i.e. fuel, oil, etc),
- validation of the card status (i.e. cancelled, lost, stolen, disposed, etc)
- ensuring that the vehicle’s tank capacity was not exceeded,
- Is the driver trying to fill up too often (i.e. within a minimum timespan
What are the differences in banking charges between using a petrol card versus a credit card?
A fleet card attracts a transaction fee between R2.50 – R3.90 (depending on the acquiring Bank) for each swipe. A monthly admin fee is also applicable on Fleet Cards.
Would there be any additional value such as loyalty programmes, reporting tools for tax purposes or ease of use to using a petrol card or why should we use a petrol card?
Diesel vehicles can enjoy discounts of ±50c per litre on 50ppm Diesel as part of our alliance with specific Oil companies. As stated above,the main purpose of a fleet card is to assist clients to manage risk and to provide detailed reporting which includes an annual fiscal report which can be used for tax purposes since a fleet card transaction also records the odometer reading of the vehicle with each transaction.
If you have business with a driver/s driving your vehicle, you also have the assurance that the card can only be used for vehicle-related purchases for the vehicle described on the card (i.e. cannot use the card to purchase goods in the store or perhaps fill-up another vehicle as the case may be by giving the driver a credit card).
The detailed reporting will also assist clients to manage the running cost of the vehicle as the reporting includes detailed transactional information (type of purchase (fuel, oil, tyres, batteries, etc), value, litres, odometer reading, merchant where the transaction took place, etc)
What would be deemed suspicious transactions with my petrol/fuel card and how can these be prevented? https://t.co/IIwEm93WH4 #ArriveAlive @StandardBankZA pic.twitter.com/pi4XSKQ0OL
— Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) March 14, 2018