Q: I received an email from Giant Eagle about a new program they’re offering that would allow customers to save 10 cents a gallon on gas in exchange for paying for it from their bank account. The program is called AdvantagePay. What exactly is this and is it safe?
M.B., Akron
A: Giant Eagle decided to launch this program after acquiring another gas station/convenience store chain, Ricker’s, in Indiana. Ricker’s offered a loyalty program that provided discounts if the rewards card was linked to a person’s bank account.
You are correct that the carrot is 10 cents off per gallon if you link your Advantage card to a checking account. Because a customer is paying with an electronic check — and not a credit or debit card that costs Giant Eagle in bank merchant fees — it enables the company to offer the 10-cent-per-gallon discount, spokesman Dan Donovan said.
Your Advantage account can be accessed at the pump by scanning your card and then entering a dedicated PIN.
Giant Eagle has rolled this program out in a few areas for now: In Northeast Ohio, it’s offered mostly in Summit, Medina and Erie counties. It hit Akron, where you’re from, in April. The company will gauge customer feedback before expanding the program.
The program is managed by a third party, ZipLine, that specializes in payment and store loyalty programs.
While some consumers might be concerned about fraud because gas pumps are frequently the target of card skimmers, Donovan said the AdvantagePay program is actually safer because the Advantage card is scanned, not inserted in a card reader. Thieves can insert card skimmers at gas pumps, ATMs and other card readers to steal card information to commit fraud.
“By using the AdvantagePay system, it actually protects against what might be the most common type of fraud,” Donovan said.
Customers also have the option of scanning their card inside GetGo stations.
AdvantagePay does offer liability protection, Donovan said. “In any potential instance of fraudulent activity . . . GetGo and ZipLine will make every effort to make the customer whole in a timely fashion,” Donovan said.
In addition, the program puts spending limits on the card — up to seven transactions a day, a $200 limit per 48-hour period and a $750 limit per week.
Electronic checks are governed by the federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Regulation E. By law, in the case of fraud or errors, consumers have 60 days from when they receive a bank statement to report the issue to the bank. The bank has 10 days to investigate and, if it’s not resolved in 10 days, the bank must issue a provisional credit while it continues to investigate.
Now, there’s one big difference about paying for a transaction with an electronic check versus paying with a debit or credit card. If you don’t have enough money in your account for a debit card transaction, it may not go through. Regardless, you won’t get charged a fee. If you don’t have room on your credit card for a transaction, it may not go through. Even if it does, you won’t get charged a fee.
But with an electronic check, the transaction will initially process but it could bounce if you don’t have enough money in your account. That could lead to a returned check fee from ZipLine/Giant Eagle and from your bank. You could be facing $40, $50 or $60 in fees.
“We recommend that you have overdraft protection on the account used for your payment card account transactions to avoid additional return fees,” Giant Eagle says in its FAQs. “By having overdraft protection with your bank, you may avoid our fees for any returned transactions.”
Back to your original question: Is this safe? Say you have a 15-gallon tank. You’ll have to decide whether it’s worth saving $1.50 to link the Advantage card to your bank account.
Fifth Third Bank’s recommendation: “We suggest that customers are careful when providing their account information to a third party,” said spokeswoman Laura Passerallo.
“We encourage customers to closely and regularly review their account and report unusual and unauthorized transactions to us immediately,” she added, noting that Fifth Third offers multiple ways for customers to monitor their accounts including instant alerts to their phone or email.
Third Federal Savings in Cleveland also has some advice. “While it is a convenience for a consumer to link their retail loyalty card to their bank account, they should regularly check their bank accounts, at least weekly, for any unauthorized activity,” said spokeswoman Jennifer Rosa. “If any unauthorized transactions post, it should be reported to the consumer’s financial institution immediately.”
For anyone who does enroll in this, my advice is the same as with debit cards, PayPal, Amazon or anything else: Don’t link them to your primary checking account where you get your direct deposits and pay your major bills from. Open a second account that you keep limited funds in.
Murray is The Plain Dealer’s personal-finance reporter. Because of the volume of requests, she cannot help everyone who contacts her. To reach her, call or text 216-316-7064 or email moneymatters@plaind.com.