Petrol Bunk - Be Careful

Yesterday I went to a Petrol Pump to quench my bike's thirst. I asked the guy to put Rs. 100/- worth petrol. While he was filling the petrol, I was continuously monitoring the meter. When he finished, I gave Rs. 500/- to the cashier. He took out some Rs. 100/- notes and counted 4 notes in front of me. Again he quickly counted 4 notes and gave to me. When I counted the money, there were only 3 notes. As soon as I complained, he promptly gave another Rs. 100/- note to me and moved away. I'd have lost money if I hadn't counted myself.

So here are few things to keep in mind when visiting Petrol Bunk.

1. Never open your vehicle’s ‘petrol tank cap’ before you see 'zero' reading in their meter. If the Petrol Bunk guy insists on continuing from the previous reading, ask him to make the meter reading 'zero'.

2. While one guy is filling petrol, the other guy may try to divert your attention by asking unnecessary questions (like “Card or Cash?” or “We have a new scheme…”). Do not look away from the meter. No need to reply to their questions.

3. If you asked for say Rs 200/- petrol and the guy stops filling in between, lets say when only Rs 100/- petrol is filled, do not ask him to fill further. Even though they heard you, they’ll pretend as if you told the m to fill only this much. And then they start filling the rest Rs 100/- worth petrol again. Many people told me that there is some catch in this (although I never understood what exactly is the catch), Even I faced this many times and so now whenever such an event happens, I simply pay the guy whatever amount he filled in one go.

4. Always remember to count the change that they return you. Many a times they try to fool you.

After some enquiries, I came to know that the oil companies (Hindustan Petroleum, Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum) are doing their best to prevent these incidents. But the Petrol Bunk owners and their employees keep trying to cheat the public.

I got fooled 4-5 times earlier by above tricks, but now I am careful enough to avoid getting cheated.