With gas prices at some of the decades lowest averages, it’s estimated 35+ million people will hit the road for the Labor Day weekend. Fraud criminals are also aware of the increased travel and will try to target victims at the gas pumps.
We advise our members to take these tips into consideration when traveling this weekend…
-Look for security tape over gas pump cabinets to ensure it hasn’t been tampered with by unauthorized parties. If the security tape is removed, cut or the gas pump appears tampered with, do not use it and report it to the manager.
-Use gas pumps located closer to the front of the gas station as fraudsters will typically place skimming devices at gas pumps away from the store to go unnoticed.
-Consider using a credit card instead of a debit card to pay for gas purchases. While there is liability protection for both, most find dealing with a credit card compromise less intrusive.
-If you don’t have a credit card, you can run your debit card as credit to avoid entering a PIN number. This can prevent PIN compromises when members use a debit card at the pump.
-Check accounts regularly to spot any unauthorized charges.
-If you suspect debit or credit card numbers may have been compromised report it immediately to authorities and contact the credit card company.
