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Man Spots Mobil Gas At $3.81. Then He Realizes It’s An All-Too-Common Trick You’re Failing For: 'False'

"Don't you think it's a little crazy that you guys advertise that?"

Mobil Gas

Photo by: Erik Mclean/Unsplash

Braden Bjella

By: Braden Bjella

Aug 18, at 6:00pm ET

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Since March, the national average for gas prices has hovered around $4 per gallon.

As anyone with a gas-guzzling car will tell you, this is especially tough to swallow at a time when other everyday costs are also increasing. Filling up a Ford F-150, the most popular car in America, now costs almost $100 for a standard-size tank — or nearly $150 if one has the optional 36-gallon tank.

There are numerous tips floating around the internet that purport to help people lower their refill costs. These range from filling up when the tank is half empty to simply pumping gas more slowly.

Another piece of advice one should internalize, an internet user says, is to watch out for gas scams. Here’s what he says you should keep your eye on.

Misleading Mobil Sign

In a video with over 158,000 views, social media user Rick (@rickyrick523) details what he says is a “total scam” at the gas station that “a lot of people” have been “dealing with…for decades.”

“So the sign on the street says that gas is $3.81, right?” Rick starts.

He then shows a small, illuminated text above the price. It says “CASH.”

“If you don't pay cash, it's $3.91,” Rick continues.

He adds that he paid with a debit card, which, in his view, is the same as cash. Despite this, he was still charged the higher price.

Later in the video, he discusses the price difference with a worker in the store. The worker affirms that the higher price also applies to debit transactions, even if Rick believes it to be the same as cash.

“Don't you think it's a little crazy that you guys advertise that and then all of a sudden you pull up here and people have to pay $3.91?” he asks the worker. The worker responds by noting that the sign specifically notes the lower price is a cash price.

In a comment, Rick further details his stance.

“It’s false advertising to get drivers to do a quick look and pull into the gas station and when they get gas, they realize the price is not what they thought it would be,” he wrote.

Is Debit the Same as Cash?

One may think that, because a debit card is simply providing access to cash you already have, it is the same thing as paying with cash. This is not true.

Most debit cards run through payment networks operated by either Mastercard or Visa. This process typically involves a fee to businesses for their use. According to NerdWallet, this fee is usually around 2.6%, plus an additional 10 cents per in-person transaction. These costs can also vary.

While this sounds small, it can quickly add up. If 20 vehicles buy $100 worth of gasoline with debit cards, over $50 is lost to card transaction fees alone.

This is why many gas stations and other stores offer a discount for using cash instead of paying with a card.

Is It Legal to Offer a Discount for Cash?

The answer to this question is a bit strange.

Visa and Mastercard note that stores are not allowed to charge an extra fee for using a debit card. However, they can give customers a discount for paying with cash.

To put it another way, a store can say that they offer a 5% discount for people paying by cash. They cannot say that they require a 5% surcharge for people paying by debit card. This also applies to debit card transactions run as credit card transactions.

That said, the rules are different for credit card transactions. In most states, a store can require a surcharge for credit cards — though that cannot be applied to debit card transactions run as credit.

Gallery: 2026 Ford F-150 Lobo

2026 Ford F-150 Lobo Review

Source: Jeff Perez / Motor1

Drivers Are Divided

In the comments section, many users sided with the station, claiming that the lower cash price was clearly marked and was therefore not a scam.

“Not a scam when it says cash. Clearly a debit card is not the same,” wrote a commenter.

“How is this a scam, the sign literally says cash above the price,” echoed another.

That said, some claimed the difference did not make sense.

“Debit is cash, cash is debit! Google the federal law it’ll tell you! Credit is credit NOT CASH!” exclaimed a user.

What do you think?

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Comments

“I agree debit should be the cash price because it’s taken right out of your checking account,” offered a second.

We’ve reached out to Rick via email and Instagram direct message, and Mobil via email.

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- The Motor1.com Team

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