Well, let’s never change “it’s just the way it is.”
Contact your bank and demand they change their “hold” policy, and then contact the owners of the gas stations and demand they change their “hold” policy.
As I said, its never been an issue for me because I have money in the bank
C'mon, as a libertarian (and formerly a Libertarian) I say contracts between consenting parties should not be in the purview of the goobermint unless they involve theft, force or fraud.
If you sign up with a bank that hoses you and admits it in writing, more fool you. If there's any question about what a seller's going to charge for using your debit card, ask.
It goes the other way too. I had a bank manager tell me that the bank processing my $93 paper check to the phone company for $930 was my problem - and that I should take it up with the phone company as they electronically processed their own payments.
My loud reply, in the middle of a busy lobby, was "Ma'am, I have a checking account with this bank. NOT with the phone company. YOU are responsible for improper processing of my clearly written check."
She folded. I got the money back immediately.
I'm hip to the hold thing. It rarely happens to me, as I frequent the same sellers and put large charges on my debit card.
A polite vendor will volunteer the amount of hold before it happens. Enterprise told me about, and immediately refunded, the $50 they put on for a two day rental.
I went into it with my eyes open.