Mobile, Contactless Fleet Payments Tool In The Works

Fleet and mobile can go hand in hand, considering drivers’ lack of stagnancy and need of constant communication with their managers. But mobile payments for fleet drivers are, so far, sparse compared to the consumer payments space.

A new partnership announced on Tuesday (May 3) will look to develop a mobile payments solution for the fleet sector. On Track Innovations subsidiary OTI PetroSmart, which provides fuel payment solutions, and Fuel Telematics Solutions (FTS), a mobile payments player, are teaming up to create the service.

Reports said the firms will use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons and NFC technology to authenticate vehicles to facilitate fuel purchases. The beacons will identify fuel stations and pumps, the firms added.

Specifically, OTI PetroSmart will provide its EasyFuelPlus tool, which automates vehicle identification at the pump and uses OTI’s existing contactless card technology. FTS will develop a cloud-based mobile payment platform for the solution.

In an interview with NFC World+, OTI PetroSmart explained further how the tool will work.

“The driver arrives on site and pulls up at the pump,” the representative said. “The mobile app recognizes the site and the specific pump by way of one of the following techniques: automatically, by using BLE beacons attached to the pump or, with user intervention, by the driver scanning QR codes or entering location codes shown at the pump whilst still inside the vehicle.”

Drivers will have a mobile app linked to their corporate or fleet cards, the representative continued. Once a driver is authorized, he or she can exit the vehicle to refuel.

The solution will also use contactless smart card and contactless reader technology between the fuel pump nozzle and the vehicle to match up data and add an additional level of authorization; once data has been matched, fuel will begin pumping, OTI PetroSmart said, adding that this mechanism means drivers will not be able to remove a nozzle from the fleet vehicle and continue fueling into another, for instance.

The solution will automate receipts, which can be accessed within the mobile app.

Reports did not indicate a timeline for when the joint solution would roll out on the market.