Mercedes-Benz is rolling out a new way to pay for services related to its luxury vehicles. This Mercedes Pay+ system could be a huge advantage for this brand.
In a new partnership with Mastercard, Mercedes-Benz is making it easy for drivers to pay for fuel digitally. This new system will allow owners to pay for the refueling process digitally instead of using a card at the pump. This new system could be a huge improvement for many luxury vehicle owners who want to pay for services in their vehicles using nothing more than a fingerprint.
A new advanced payment system makes refueling easier
Although refueling isn’t a difficult process, the new Mercedes Me Fuel & Pay service makes this process easier. The system will roll out in Germany first and allow drivers to pay for fuel at a selected pump right from the car. When a driver arrives at a linked gas station and turns off the car, this system starts and calculates the most that would be paid using the gas price at that station and the amount of fuel left in the tank. You won’t need to use your phone, just your fingerprint, and the payment process is done.
Once the fuel has been added, the driver can see how much was added and the total paid. This money is charged directly to the Mastercard on file, and an email is sent to the customer.
Consumers are looking for this tech
The youngest generation of adults has grown up in a digital age, utilizing phones and other devices for payments. A market research survey found that more than half of those surveyed between the ages of 18 and 39 are interested in buying services and goods through the infotainment system. This new system makes sense when gassing up cars and recharging electric vehicles, and it makes the process a little faster.
A new, innovative payment system from Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes Pay+ is only the stepping stone in serious innovation in making in-car payments. The ability to pay for something at the point of sale from the in-car system eliminates the need for PINs or mobile device identification. Although limited to fuel chargers, this new system could be utilized for restaurant orders, online shopping, and other grocery orders. Imagine pulling up to the pizza place and being able to pay from the car without ever pulling a card out of your purse or wallet or using your smartphone to pay.
Other car services could be handled with this payment system
Paying for dinner might not be part of this new system for a while, but other car-related services could be paid for using this Mercedes-Benz program. These services could be anything from parking fees, repair costs, and tolls that could easily be paid for right from the infotainment system. This system could quickly expand to other goods and services, but for now, it’s meant for car-related purchases, mostly fuel. This new system shows how Mercedes-Benz is working toward advancing the driving experience.
Could Mercedes Pay+ be offered in other countries
The first rollout of this system is limited to Germans in Germany, but it should become available to other European countries. With successful updates and releases, this new payment system could easily become part of every Mercedes-Benz vehicle in the world. This new system is a way to set the standard for our vehicles to handle more digital stuff and make driving better. Will this be the tech you find in your future Mercedes-Benz electric vehicle? That’s certainly possible, but we’ll need to wait and see how secure and successful it is.
Is this in-car payment system secure?
Mastercard provides advanced Secure Card on File for Commerce tech, which Mercedes-Benz includes in its vehicles. This tech is the most advanced system to safeguard payment information with encryption technology and unique codes. Mastercard and Mercedes-Benz have confidence in this system being secure and safe, but would widespread use of the new Mercedes Pay+ system make it more vulnerable to attacks by hackers? We won’t have an answer to this until the system is used for a longer time and is available to more drivers than only Germans driving Mercedes-Benz vehicles.
It’s a fresh move, but is it the right move for you?
If you buy or lease a Mercedes-Benz vehicle, do you want to pay for car-related services right from the car? The new Mercedes Pay+ system makes payments easy and straightforward, which can be enjoyable, but is this system secure enough for you to trust it? Only time will tell.
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