The national average price of a gallon of gasoline has fallen to $4.189, but it’s much higher in some states as California residents are paying an average of $5.854.
This is creating a problem for some drivers as Bloomberg notes a number of gas stations set a $125 limit for Visa transactions. While that means most drivers should be able to get at least 20 gallons of gas, some pickup and SUV owners have been forced to split their fill ups into two different transactions.
This is a hassle for drivers, but changes are on the horizon. According to a document seen by the publication, Visa will raise the fraud-liability threshold to $175 next month as well as “quadruple the maximum transaction amount that carries better interchange rates for purchases made with small-business and commercial cards.” Together, these moves are expected to motivate gas stations to increase the transaction limits for Visa customers.
Also Read: The Era Of $5 Per Gallon Gas Is Here, And Things Are About To Get Worse According To Analysts
Changes are also reportedly happening at Mastercard as the publication says the amount the company pre-authorizes at gas stations will increase from $125 to $175 for consumer cards. Likewise, business cardholders will see their pre-authorization limits at gas stations raise from $350 to $500.
While most people haven’t been impacted by the limits, it’s been a pain for those who drive diesel-powered vehicles. The highest recorded average price for a gallon of diesel in California was set on March 30th at $6.440. That means customers would have only been able to get a little over 19 gallons of diesel before hitting Visa’s $125 limit. That’s quite a bit of fuel, but some diesel versions of the Ford F-Series Super Duty have 34 and 48 gallon fuel tanks.
