Frequently Asked Questions

Gas stations, hotels, and car rental agencies frequently preauthorize a transaction, which means they place a hold on your account until they know the final amount owed. Here are some common situations when an authorization hold will apply: 

Gas at the Pump: You choose to pay for gas at the pump using your card. For example: Let’s say you fill your gas tank with $35.00 worth of gas. The gas station, however, will place a temporary authorization hold in the amount of $75.00. Three days later, the gas station settles the transaction for only the actual amount of the gas purchased. That means the additional funds that were being held will be released back to the account, thus making those funds ($40.00) available to you. Note: You can avoid the authorization hold by paying at the cashier inside the gas station instead of paying at the pump.

Car Rental: The rental agency usually requires a deposit of 15% more than the cost of renting the car. They will put an extra hold on the account for that amount of money, which could last for a couple of weeks. We suggest that you call the car rental agency to inquire about how much they require for a standard deposit.

Hotel Room: The hotel may place a hold on your account that covers the room rate plus 15%. This amount will be held until the hotel settles the transaction. A typical hotel authorization hold could be released the day of checkout, or the hold could take up to several weeks to be settled and released. We suggest that you call the hotel to inquire about the amount of a typical room authorization hold.