In a move to cut waiting times and increase convenience, Caltex Australia will be introducing Pay@Pump technology to 300 Caltex and Star Mart retail sites nationally by the end of the year.

Pay@Pump will allow motorist to pay for their fuel purchase at the pump using most major credit or debit cards, as well as StarCard and other Caltex-branded cards, issued with a PIN.

Caltex acting general manager marketing and distribution Leo Pucar said the rollout followed strongly positive feedback received from motorists during a successful trial of the technology across selected metropolitan retail sites over the past few months.

“Pay@Pump provides a convenient payment option for those customers who only want to buy fuel,” he said.

“We know that service station forecourts can be busy places and long queues are annoying to motorists.

“The Pay@Pump technology enables time-poor motorists to fill-up and pay for their fuel right there at the pump – this also helps reduce queues for those who would prefer to go in the store to pay for their fuel and/or purchase convenience products.”

Pay@Pump operates on a pre-payment basis where transactions are pre-authorised by the cardholder, to check if there are available funds in the cardholder’s account before the fuel transaction can commence. Customers also provide a pre-authorised amount but do not necessarily have to fill up to that amount.

For example, a customer selects to fill their car up to $75 and only fills $50. The $50 will be charged to the customer's credit or debit card. The pre-authorised $75 will be released after the transaction. However, the pre-authorised amount may not occur immediately dependent on the card issuer.

Pucar said Pay@Pump was the first technology of its type in Australia to accept most major cards and was also capable of processing “tap’n’go” transactions using MasterCard, PayPass and Visa payWave.

“All these innovations are designed to make a visit to Caltex and Star Mart faster and more convenient, enabling busy families and workers to fill-up quickly and get to where they are going,” he said.