Forum user calculates 19 cents less per liter with loyalty cards

The trio of cards that, according to a forum user, cuts 19 cents per liter

With fuel prices heading up and diesel nearing one euro per liter in some areas, the classic debate returns: is it more economical to find the cheapest gas station or to accumulate discount cards? Some have calculated the answer to the cent. A purchasing group called Círculo de Conductores (Drivers' Circle), free and without fees, unites individuals and self-employed workers to negotiate with oil companies like Cepsa, Galp, and AGLA for conditions a lone driver cannot achieve. The premise repeated by its defenders is simple: many members, high consumption, greater discount.

The key is not a magic card, but stacking them. The collective's Cepsa Star Direct offers a 6-cent-per-liter bonus (7 cents for Diesel Óptima) and is not used for payment, only to apply the group discount. Other cards are added on top of this to form what a forum user calls the discount trio.

How much can you really save per tank

According to a forum user's calculation, Star Direct + Club Carrefour + Visa Cepsa Porquetuvuelves totals 19 cents per liter, or 9.3 euros for a 50-liter tank. Without the Visa, the Star Direct + Club Carrefour combination, by the same calculation, comes to 11 cents. For those who don't have this visa, alternatives appear: Santander cards offer 5.2 cents on Wednesdays and 3.2 cents on other days, and the Club Marca Roja is obtained with five codes from five different issues of the Marca newspaper.

The process at the pump has its own ritual. The Cepsa Star Direct, the Club Carrefour card, and the Visa Cepsa are given to the attendant. The Star card is put into recharge mode, triggering the bonus; payment is made with the other card. So far, the theory. In practice, more than one person has had to change stations because the cashier didn't know how to do it.

Is it a multi-level marketing scheme or a purchasing group?

Distrust has accompanied the group from the beginning. Some have directly labeled it a pyramid scam and others have searched company registries to try and debunk it. The response from the defenders is that Círculo de Conductores costs nothing, requires no minimum consumption for direct discount cards, and does not obligate participants to build any network. Invitations exist, but they are optional.

The contract, however, does include an uncomfortable clause: members who do not make purchases within the timeframe set for each sector may be automatically deactivated with loss of rights, except in cases of serious illness or being abroad. For someone who drives 4,000 kilometers a year instead of 8,000, the question is relevant.

Low cost versus cards: the ongoing battle

The analysis splits here. One side argues that no discount beats the cheapest station outright: with 95 octane gasoline at 1.09 euros or even 1.07 at low-cost operators, a 1% or 4% saving is not worth it. The other side responds with geography: in many parts of the country, there are no low-cost gas stations nearby, and those living far from a major city have no choice. The card combination, they claim, lowers the price of diesel A to the range of 0.96 to 1.00 euros per liter for daily users.

What has changed the game are the cutbacks. Since March 1, 2015, the Visa Cepsa Porquetuvuelves went from offering 1% on almost any purchase to limiting it to food and travel, with an annual cap of 4,200 euros, translating to a maximum annual saving of €42. The previous fuel discount had a ceiling of 150 euros.

The discount that, according to a forum user, makes a real difference

While cards are being discussed, a forum user points to another figure. He claims, firsthand, that a fleet with its own 40,000-liter tanker refuels 30,000 liters at prices 15 or 20 cents below the pump price. In his opinion, that is the real discount, not something achieved by accumulating plastic cards, and gathering private car owners to negotiate a couple of cents falls short when the real volume is measured in tanker trucks.

The discussion ends where it began: savings depend on the area, consumption, and the cards each person can access. No one has managed to close the account for the average case.