Chevron Plans to Offer Apple Pay at the Pump

Chevron Oil Co. is planning to support Apple Pay at its gas pumps in early 2015, despite longstanding fears among consumers that using a cell phone while fueling is a fire hazard.

Chevron confirmed its plans on Twitter following reports on MacRumors and other tech news sites, though it has not set a firm timeline for its acceptance of the Apple mobile wallet at gas pumps.

Apple Pay, a contactless mobile pay system based on Near Field Communication technology, currently works only at the in-store cash registers at Chevron and Texaco gas stations. Chevron acquired Texaco in 2001.

"We are rolling out Apple Pay to convenience stores across the country, and at the same time are actively working with Apple on ways to add the option at the pump, but there is no timeline yet, however," Chevron spokesman Braden Reddall stated in an e-mail to PaymentsSource.

When Chevron made its intentions known when Apple Pay launched, San Francisco Chronicle was quick to remind motorists that using a cell phone to pay at the pump was not dangerous, as so many had believed that sparks from cell phones could ignite gas pumps.

ExxonMobil faced a similar issue last year when testing its own mobile app. The company had warning signs at its pumps that cautioned against cell phone use, and removed those before testing its SpeedPass+ mobile payment app.

PayPal and gas station operator Mapco partnered last summer to develop a mobile payment option with incentives of cheaper gas prices.

Gas station owners in the U.S. have been contemplating mobile payment options as they upgrade pumps to accept EMV-chip cards. Petroleum companies have until October 2017 to enable chip-card acceptance, two years longer than other companies, according to a liability-shift timeline set by the major card networks.