Total Engergies Fuel Station in France - Prepayment Required and not refunded yet
Hi, I used a Total Fuel Station on the N12, the site demanded a payment first of 99 euros to release the pump, my actual fuel was around 70 euros which I also had to pay for. Both charges have appeared on my credit card statement but I only got a receipt for the 70 euros. I have spoken to my card provider who say they cant cancel the transaction, I have been able to contact Total Energies in France by email who have taken my details, said they would investigate but its 3 weeks since they said this and they havent responded to my chaser email last week or today. Unfortunately I cannot phone them because international calls are blocked on my phone and the provider says they cant at the moment lift the block. Any ideas?
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I would persist with the card provider, there has clearly been some sort of electronic error, that they should be able to identify and I would have thought it there responsibility to sort out. It’s standard for the non manned pumps in France and the UK to temporarily debit your account with a sum prior to you accessing the fuel and then refund the residual once you have finished filling. I’ve not come across a sum as low as 99 euros for a few years though, recently they have been 120 / 150 and even 500 on a site also used by HGV’s. It used to take a day or two for the residual to be returned to your account, but in the last year or so it’s been more ore less instantaneous and I only see the initial charge if I check the App immediately after filling.
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Hope all gets sorted out, as @SteveL said not heard of 99 euros and as we live here OH topped up his vehicle the other day as prices were going up pump took 200 euros and actual fuel was less than a 100 euros and remaining balance was refunded before he had left the pump and same for my car in the afternoon different supermarket pump and balanced refunded before we drove off and mine was for a smaller amount, maybe as we have French bank cards it is quicker but we have never had any issues.
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Eventually my credit card provider accepted a dispute claim from me after refusing initialty and pending investigation refunded the first wrong payment. After a few weeks Total came back to me explaining that I had "in there words" filled up twice, putting 86 litres in the first fill, then 43 litres in the second (actual) fill. I replied that this was impossible as my car has a 60 litre tank and requested the CCTV evidence of this.
As soon as I asked for the CCTV they requested my details for a refund, I told them that my bank had already done this so the matter was closed. Will avoid in future.
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@Stephen O We have used Total Energies in the past, but not had any problems like you. Thanks for the update, interesting.
We have been to a couple of stations where you had to go into the shop before fuelling up, and were asked how much we were going to use. A bit difficult to estimate, one employee became rather shirty when I said I didn't know exactly how much. But I had to tell her what amount we needed, so I tried to guesstimate. Pump then autmatically stopped when that amount was reached, it turned out to be a pretty good guess in the end, although we could have put more diesel in, tank was just over 3/4 full, so plenty to be going on with. Yet not every TE station operates in that way.
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