In general, when monitoring fuel transactions, fleet fuel card providers advise paying attention to the following red flags to make sure fuel purchases are on the up and up:
- Multiple fueling transactions during the same day.
- Inconsistent mileages between fill-ups.
- Unauthorized fuel purchases.
- Use of the wrong fuel type/grade.
- Non-fuel purchases.
- Abnormal fuel amounts. For example, pumping 30 gallons during one transaction when the assigned vehicle only has a 15-gal capacity fuel tank.
- An employee reaches or exceeds their authorized gallon limit per month.
- Fuel station location. Typically, route drivers return to the same fueling stations to purchase fuel. If different stations start to appear, verify with the driver that the purchases are valid.