Scam Alert: Think You're Filling Gas Tank? Think Again

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Here’s a scam you may not have seen coming.

Mike Daher certainly didn’t, and he’s been running a Mobil gas station in Southfield for 30 years.

Here’s how the scam works, Daher told WJBK-TV:

The scofflaw drives up to the pumps and switches the gas nozzles and hoses, placing them on the opposite side of where they belong. Then the thief waits for someone else to pull up, enter payment information and start pumping gas.

Everything looks fine, because the numbers are going up, but it’s the scammer’s gas tank that’s being filled. By the time the victim realizes what has happened, the thief is long gone.

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Daher advises customers to be aware of their surroundings and what’s going on at the other pumps.

“Basically just be aware,” Daher said. “Be aware of what’s going on, that’s all you’ve got to do.”

Similar incidents have been reported in California and Texas.

In Lubbock, TX, the assistant manager of a gas station advised tracing the hose down from the top to “make sure the pump you are using is to your side,” according to KLBK-TV.

In California, an acupuncturist from Sonoma County told The Press Democrat said she “felt pretty dumb” after filling up someone else’s car to the tune of $36.36. She thought something was amiss about the gas pump, but proceeded anyway.

“I saw the red flags … but it never occurred to me that someone would do something like this. I’m kind of astounded,” she told the newspaper.

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Patch file photo