Clayton - the $100 is not a charge, it is a hold. The system is set up that way so you can use your credit card to pay for gas at the pump. Otherwise people could just swipe a card that is maxed out and drive away when the bill bounces. It happens with gas Stations, hotels, online retailers, taxis and restaurants. Gas stations do it so that they know the gas will be paid for, hotels do it so that they know the room will be paid for when you leave, online retailers do it so your charge will be covered at checkout, restaurants do it so you have room to leave a tip, flights also put an authorization on first too. You can't avoid authorizations and use a credit card - it is part of how they are designed and it actually protects you from overlimit fees and interest charges.

akkio - something is not right with your story. I have a Capital One card and they have 100% fraud protection on all their cards. When you called you would have been asked to verify your charges, then they would have given you the name of the business you used the card with and asked you to contact them first to get them to correct your bill. If the retailer did not fix the problem - then Capital One would have escalated it and mailed you a fraud package. And you did not ask to have the card # changed - that can be done anytime and will stop any new charges going on your account. There is something about your story that has been left out or you have re-edited in your mind.

akiko, your issue can be explain by your ignorance of the terms of your cc that you agreed to.

Recently I purchsed $60.00 of gas at the Esso station on Mapleview Drive in Barrie Ontario. When I got my credit card it showed a debit of $100.00 for my purchase. I reported this fraud to Capital One Master Card and was informed that some of your stations automatically debit your card for the $100.00 for four days and then credit back the difference. My question is this "WHERE THE HELL DO YOU GET OFF TAKING $40.00 OF MY HARD EARNED MONEY FOR FOUR DAYS?". I will wait the four days to see if this is true. Regardless wether it is policy of some statons or not, I will NEVER purchase gas at any of your stations again and will be sure to make it public knowledge what you are doing. This policy is outrageous and immoral. Its not like the gas companies aren't already screwing their customers enough by artificially inflating the price. As a major player in the current gas market you discust me, its already bad enough that the banks make interest of money that doesnt belong to them. Now you are doing the same thing.

Thanks for the info, re: standard policy for pay-at-the-pump, will make sure I never do that. From experience I know that using a Capital One card can elevate the problem quite a bit more. I used a Capital One M/C back in 2006 for gas in Ontario while passing through the province on a trip. In 2007 my card was repeatedly charged for different amounts and I therefore reported it to Capital One. Their response was that by using my card, I had authorized the business the use of the card and I had to honor any debts incurred now and in the future by that company, telling me to read the fine print on the back of the agreement. This battle went on for a couple of years, and my card was not only maxed out but over-maxed! I constantly called Capital One asking why they were allowing this and I hadn't been in, or ordered anything from Ontario, and in fact if I tried to use my card (now that it had been over-maxed) I would be 'denied' and so why were they allowing a third party to charge to it for fraudulent reasons as I hadn't received or ordered anything to justify it. I asked Capital One to freeze the card and give me a new card & number, which they refused until I paid for the over-maxed one and was by then incurring an additional charge for being over-limit. What a nightmare with harassing phone calls day and night for me to pay what they were allowing, I cut up my card. In the end, I did pay the card off, including the charges which had been fraudulently allowed just to be rid of Capital One. I was so exhausted from not only their calls, but also from several weeks of chemo/radiation therapy fighting cancer that had appeared in the meantime. All I can say now is that I am happy to be alive and I will never use Capital One again. I have been enjoying, and never had a problem with, my bank-issued Visa and Master Card. Bank-issued charge cards are the only way to go. I did have a Bay card, hardly ever used it, but when I received a greeting letter saying that Capital One took over the Bay cards - I immediately cut it up & cancelled the account. Beware!