Aussies stunned after mum shares 'game changing' new petrol hack

A Melbourne woman has shared a little-known way to pay for petrol which could be a "lifesaver" for many Australians.

Calling it a "mum hack", Brittany Bevan recently discovered she can sort out her bill at the servo without leaving her two-year-old son in the car unattended.

"I'm kicking myself that I only just discovered it... wish I knew this sooner," she said in a TikTok video this week.

She realised she could pay for petrol through the 7-Eleven app, which has also been available for sometime on other petrol station apps including BP, Ampol and Costco.

"I've never filled up my car with petrol when Louie, my two-year-old, is in the car with me," she said in the video. "If I need petrol that day I will just avoid going out with him... I'm too lazy to get him out of the car and take him in to pay with me."

However, all drivers need to do is download the app, make an account, put in their payment details, select the pump they're at while at the station, and fill up their petrol. "[Then] you literally just drive off and it's paid for... it's a lifesaver," she said. Customers should not use their mobile phones at the pump and should only do so inside their vehicle.

Aussies respond to petrol 'hack'

The video, which has attracted almost 400,000 views, received many comments, with some thinking it was "amazing" you could simply pay on your phone, having not heard of the "hack" before.

While others who had heard of it, shared how inclusive the concept was. "I'm disabled and it's awesome," one person said.

"I discovered paying on the app before I had my daughter and it's been a game changer," another said. "Only way I'll pay," a third person commented. "Although I do feel weird driving away at first as if I've stolen."

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Hefty fines for leaving child unattended

In Australia, it's an offence to leave a child in a car unattended for safety reasons, and it is advised against leaving them even for a short moment like going to pay for petrol.

In Victoria, leaving a child unattended without proper supervision "for a time which is unreasonable" can be punishable by 25 unit points ($4807) or even six months in jail. While in NSW the penalties are even heavier, carrying a maximum $22,000 fine or two years in jail.

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