Shell to Adopt ‘Partial Authorization’ of Prepaid Visa Cards

SAN FRANCISCO — Visa USA yesterday announced that Shell fuel stations are adopting Visa “partial authorization,” which allows drivers to more easily purchase gas at the pump using a Visa prepaid card. Shell is in the process of expanding this service at stations across the U.S. Under the service, if a prepaid card only has enough funds to pay for a portion of a total gas purchase, the transaction will no longer be declined, prompting the cardholder to “see attendant.” Instead, the pump can now be instructed to shut off when the funds on the Visa prepaid card reach zero. “Visa is focused on building the prepaid category infrastructure to help ensure convenient acceptance and to give consumers greater flexibility to use Visa prepaid cards in more places,” said Todd Brockman, senior vice president, prepaid products, Visa USA, in a statement.

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