Why are authorisation rates so high at rapid chargers?

[Deleted member 6627]

While waiting for my new MG5 I have been reading through the wealth of information on this site. One thing I have read a number of times is about high authorisation rates placed on credit/debit cards when using rapid chargers. Why are they so high? When I top up with petrol Tesco/Asda/another place a £1 authorisation on my card and then update it with the correct amount once I have filled up and they know the exact cost.

So why do the rapid chargers authorise so much more? The cost of electricity is cheaper than petrol so it can't be due to the high price. The transaction is complete once you disconnect the cable from the car so the period of the authorisation is relatively short and rarely more than an hour; not like there is enough time to cancel your card and do a runner. I think of any other reason they place the large authorisation and as many people have found repeated attempts on a broken charger can make your online banking look quite scary.

Anybody got any other ideas?

 

[Jomarkh]

If you get the Electric Juice card from Octopus Energy then they dont add pre authorisation fees and it goes straight onto your account.

 

[Alb]

Just got myself one of these cards. As an Octopus customer it couldn't be easier.
Note that they don't have an agreement with all suppliers though.

 

[Stevebissex]

While waiting for my new MG5 I have been reading through the wealth of information on this site. One thing I have read a number of times is about high authorisation rates placed on credit/debit cards when using rapid chargers. Why are they so high? When I top up with petrol Tesco/Asda/another place a £1 authorisation on my card and then update it with the correct amount once I have filled up and they know the exact cost.

So why do the rapid chargers authorise so much more? The cost of electricity is cheaper than petrol so it can't be due to the high price. The transaction is complete once you disconnect the cable from the car so the period of the authorisation is relatively short and rarely more than an hour; not like there is enough time to cancel your card and do a runner. I think of any other reason they place the large authorisation and as many people have found repeated attempts on a broken charger can make your online banking look quite scary.

Anybody got any other ideas?

Tesco podpoint take £30 and then when it don't work which has happened twice to me, it takes a week.or so to release on your card. Very annoying, just use Instavolt it's just swipe and go.