Fun Stuff > CHATTER
When in Rome, do as the Romans do
Loki:
I think pump-then-pay is the usual way in Germany. I have only seen my favourite ex doing it, and I don't precisely remember.
On the elbows, it's exactly the other way around in Germany (the reasoning suppposedly being to prevent kids doing "nasty stuff" while having the hand in their lap. No, it doesn't make sense to me either.)
ankhtahr:
Well, having your hands in your lap is considered much worse than having your elbows on the table, but that is considered very rude too. Usually you have your forearms on the edge of the table.
And yes, pump then pay is the usual way in Germany. I'm even confused as to how it works the other way around. How do you know how much to pay, before you filled up? Here you simply drive up to the pump, fill your tank with gas or diesel (I gathered that diesel cars are very uncommon in the US) and then go inside and tell the operator which pump you used (they are numbered). You pay and then drive away. In case you shouldn't pay there are video cameras above every pump, recording your license plate, so the next day you're going to get a visit by the police.
Loki:
Speculation: you walk up to the cashier, pay and he "unlocks" a specific pump up to the amount you paid? That's how I'd implement it.
ankhtahr:
But how do you fill up? I wouldn't know if I'd need 40 or 50 litres (random numbers, our driving school car actually had to be filled by about 60 litres, the Punto of my grandparents only by 35). Here you just fit the nozzle into the car, pull the lever and then there's a small switch, which locks the lever. The lever is released automatically when the tank is full.
Papersatan:
Most Americans use a credit or debit card, and most modern gas pumps have a place to swipe the card at the pump, so you swipe it and then pump as much as you need. If you have to pay cash you have to estimate the amount you will need and in mot places you go into the cashier to pay an tell them which pump you are at. If you over pay then you have to go back and get change. There was one station in Rochester though which actually had a slot to insert cash at the pump and could give change, like a very expensive vending machine. :)
Most gas stations let you pump then pay in the 90's when gas was 89 cents a gallon and we drove mostly sedans, but as gas prices went up, and fuel tanks got bigger, the risk of someone driving off was higher. Also I think that as more and more places started taking credit/debit cards it became the normal way to pay and so consumers were open to the idea of swiping their card at the pump instead of going in to pay, because for most consumers they were going to pay with a card anyways, so this is less work.
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