BP Gas Cards Review: Are The Business Solutions Cards Right for Your Fleet?

BP is one of the biggest oil and gas companies in the world, and it has two fleet fuel card programs administered by BP Business Solution: the BP Business Solutions Fuel Plus and the BP Business Solutions Mastercard.

Both cards have similar benefits, which include impressive rebates on fuel and unlimited cards per account without additional cost. The main difference between the two is that the BP Mastercard can be used outside of its quite small station network, one reason why we’ve rated it as being one of the best fuel cars for truckers. However, with that card, you still have to pay a $2 out-of-network fee each time you top up.

We’ll go over all the other benefits and drawbacks of both fuel cards in this BP Business Solutions gas cards review, and let you know what type of fleet we think they’re best for.

BP’s Gas Cards: Key Benefits

Both BP Business Solutions fleet fuel cards have similar features and benefits. Before we dive into their common benefits, we’ve highlighted the main differences between the two in the table below:

BP Business Solutions Mastercard	BP Business Solutions Fuel Plus card
Can be used at stations that accept MasterCard – that’s around 95% of all US stations (or approx. 187,000 US locations)	Can be used at BP and Amoco branded stations – that’s around 8,700 locations (7,859 BP stations and 840 Amoco stations respectively) in the US
Can be used for maintenance purchases	Can only be used for purchasing fuel

✓ Save on fuel costs

One of the features that crowns BP as one of the best fuel card providers for truckers is the monthly rebates on offer. If your fleet runs on gasoline, you’ll save more as you buy more:

BP states that these rates are subject to change after the first 12 months you open an account. That means BP Business Solutions could decide to significantly cut your discounts after one year.

You also won’t benefit from this sliding scale if you are purchasing off-road diesel, aviation fuel, bulk fuel, propane, or natural gas.

You’ll only get these rebates when your drivers fill up at BP or Amoco stations, even with the BP Business Solutions Mastercard. This is quite standard in the industry, so we can’t hold it against BP.

✓ View real-time activity data

Using BP’s online portal, you can keep an eye on the purchases your drivers are using their fleet cards to make – in real-time, 24/7. You’ll be able to look at account information whenever you want, and create reports by driver, vehicle, exception, MPG, and more.

As well as drastically cutting down your admin time, BP’s reporting will also enable you to keep an eye on fuel usage and vehicle performance – empowering you to start cutting back on unnecessary costs.

✓ Customize purchase controls

Not only can you use BP’s online portal to monitor your driver’s card usage, but you can also use it to set spending limits. Here’s what you can do:

• Decide what each card can be used for, purchasing fuel only, or maintenance services (only on the BP Mastercard). Cards may be restricted from being used for specific types of transactions such as ATM cash access or money transfers, too.
• Restrict the amount that can be spent on each transaction, over a set period (daily, weekly, or monthly), or on certain days of the week or times of day. This is all on a card-by-card basis, too.
• Set alerts for purchases that are made outside of business hours.

✓ Limit fraud with security features

With BP’s fleet cards, security is as much a priority as flexibility. Cards require a driver ID and odometer reading before each purchase, so you’ll know your cards aren’t being used by the wrong people.

You’ll also be able to block specific cards from your BP account if they become lost or you suspect fraudulent activity.

As per the client agreements of each card, it’s your responsibility to monitor fleet management reports, transaction histories, statement balances, and receipts regularly to detect and address any suspicious or unauthorized transactions.

Should a card be lost or stolen, you must report it immediately via the phone or the online account management system. Until the issuer receives your report of a lost or stolen card, you are liable for all transactions made with that card. Even after reporting, there is a specified liability window, typically 24 hours after the notice is received, during which you may be responsible for fraudulent transactions, so you must act fast (though this isn’t out of the ordinary and you’ll often be covered within this window).

✓ Cancel anytime

There is no fixed term for either agreement, so you may cancel the program at any time with notice, though you remain responsible for any outstanding balances.

What are BP Fleet Cards’ Disadvantages?

No fleet gas card is perfect, and BP Business Solutions’s cards are no exception. Here are the main disadvantages:

✗ Limited network coverage

Perhaps one of the biggest drawbacks to using a BP Business Solutions fuel card is the fact that the BP and Amoco gas station network is quite small. There are only around 8,700 stations across the US, and most are concentrated on the East Coast and in the Midwest.

Since the BP Business Solutions Fuel Plus card can only be used within the network, it’s a non-option for fleets that operate outside of BP/Amoco’s station hotspots. By comparison, the likes of the WEX Fleet Card or the Edenred Essentials cards are accepted across nearly the whole of the US.

While it’s possible to purchase fuel outside of the BP/Amoco network with the BP Business Solutions Mastercard, you won’t get rebates on fuel, and you’ll have to pay a $2 out-of-network fee every time you do – but other fuel card companies, like ARCO, enforce similar rates. This makes the card’s out-of-network function only really useful in emergencies.

✗ Limited perks and discounts

Besides rebates on gasoline, there really any other perks offered by BP Business Solutions fleet fuel cards that you might find with other competitors.

That could be discounts on non-fuel purchases, such as a 15% reduction on anything from car maintenance to oil changes at Jiffy Lube as with the Shell Small Business card and other top fleet fuel cards, but BP don’t have any such arrangements in place.

BP Business Solutions Gas Cards Costs and Fees

Both the Business Solutions Mastercard and Business Solutions Fuel Plus cards require a monthly fee of $12. This fee is charged on a flat-rate basis regardless of the amount of fuel purchased or the number of transactions made. The fee is applied every month that your account remains active.

Our research tells us that this $12 monthly account fee is quite reasonable given you can have an unlimited number of cards according to BP, unlike other providers which card per card. Plus, BP’s rebates on fuel and spending controls should make up for it by helping you cut down on fuel costs.

Are there any other costs associated with BP’s gas cards?

Should you not pay your outstanding balance, you will be subject to a late fee. The late fee is $75 or 12.25% of the new balance (whichever is higher). Neither card is a revolving credit account, so the full statement balance must be paid by the due date. Both agreements detail billing cycles and payment methods, including check, online, pay-by-phone, and EFT/ACH payments.

Each card also applies ‘risk-based pricing‘: if your business qualifies as high credit risk (for example, if your commercial or consumer credit score falls below a specified threshold or you incur multiple late fees), you could be charged an additional 2 percent of your account’s credit/spend limit per billing cycle. For example, if your credit/spend limit is set at 10,000 dollars, the additional fee would be 200 dollars per billing cycle.

If you are deemed a high credit risk, your account will then be reviewed every three months for changes in creditworthiness. The criteria used to determine a high credit risk include:

• Your commercial credit score falls below 600 after 12 or more months on the account.
• Your consumer credit score falls below 670 after 12 or more months on the account.
• You incur two or more late fees within any 12-month rolling period.

Other gas card providers also enforce these high credit risk fees, such as ARCO, while others simply reject the applications of those deemed to be higher risk.

A final potential fee to consider is only for BP Business Solutions Mastercard customers. If you purchase fuel outside of the BP/Amoco network with this card, you’ll pay a $2 out-of-network fee on each purchase.

In other words, businesses on this plan will want to instruct drivers to use BP/Amoco stations first and foremost. Alternatively, the Fuel Plus card might be more attractive if your fleet frequently fuels outside the BP network since it doesn’t apply this fee.

Are BP Business Solutions’s Fleet Cards Right for My Business?

Could one of BP’s fleet cards be right for your business? Let’s find out:

“I manage a small fleet”

Either of BP Business Solutions’s cards could be a good fit for you. Both come with features that’ll help you save money and time – two precious small business resources – by cutting out unnecessary purchases and eliminating the need for time-sucking admin tasks like filing receipts and reimbursing your drivers. If your drivers are consistently within reach of BP/Amoco stations, the Fuel Plus card is the better choice of the two.

Still, if saving as much cash as possible is important to you, you might want to cross BP off your list of potential providers. You could even opt for a prepaid fuel card which you can add funds to as and when you need them (though typically you’ll have a lower rebate rate with these options).

“I manage a medium to large-sized fleet”

Unless there are BP/Amoco stations in all the locations your fleet operates, the BP Business Solutions Mastercard will likely be the better option for your business – especially if your drivers travel coast to coast or border to border.

Rather than limiting you to BP/Amoco stations only, this card can be used at any station that accepts MasterCard – which amounts to 175,000 locations across the country. It’s worth remembering, though, that you won’t benefit from any fuel cost rebates when you use a station that isn’t BP/Amoco.

“My fleet only operates regionally”

If your fleet only operates in one region, both BP Business Solutions cards could be a great fit, as long as there are a lot of BP/Amoco stations in the area.

If your fleet operates in the East or Midwest of the US, BP Business Solutions fuel cards are a good option since there are a lot of BP/Amoco stations in these areas. Delivery companies, taxi firms, and other fleets that operate within the boundaries of a city are a good match for BP.

However, if you operate anywhere else in the US, we don’t recommend you get either BP Business Solutions card. While it’s true that the BP Mastercard can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted (significantly widening the network), you won’t benefit from fuel rebates, and you’ll pay $2 per out-of-network purchase. This means you’ll be spending more money on fuel instead of saving money.

In short, if you’re based in any of the places where BP stations are lacking, you should consider a different fleet card company.

BP Business Solutions Fleet Card Alternatives

To help you make the right decision for your business, we’ve reviewed a variety of US fleet card providers. Here’s how they compare to BP’s gas cards at a glance, before we make some deeper comparisons.

Costs and fee structures

Both the BP Business Solutions Mastercard and Fuel Plus card charge a flat 12-dollar monthly fee per account. They also include risk-based pricing of 2% of your account’s credit/spend limit if you qualify as high credit risk. We’d argue this makes for straightforward pricing structure, while what qualifies as a high-risk account is clearly explained, as discussed in the pricing section.

However, other competitors offer what appear to be lower monthly fees on first look. For example, the Shell Small Business Card imposes no fees at all with a larger brand station network and handy tools, like a station locator app. This might be better for small fleets looking to cut costs (though do check Shell has stations in your region).

Still, BP is more cost effective if you have more than a few drivers than other competitors in the table above. For instance, WEX Fleet Card charges up to 4 dollars per card monthly. It offers additional rebates and great features such as pay-at-pump and a fuel price comparison tool, but this per card cost will see you match the BP price with just three cards. Whereas, you can have unlimited cards with BP and its two client agreement documents do not detail anything about a fee per card or any additional costs per card.

Network acceptance

While the BP Business Solutions Mastercard can be used anywhere that accepts Mastercard (unlike the BP Fuel Plus card), there is a $2 out-of-network fee on each transaction made at fueling locations that are not BP or Amoco branded.

By comparison, the WEX Fleet Card offers the same wide-acceptance at 95% of US gas stations without any fee, giving drivers flexibility to choose the most cost-effective fueling option.

Additional features

Both BP cards include detailed fraud prevention measures—such as mandatory monitoring of transactions, prompt reporting of lost or stolen cards, and customizable purchasing controls to restrict usage outside of business needs.

These provisions offer robust security for fleets, however these features do not extend to other tools such as fuel price comparison tools or at-pump payment capabilities offered by the WEX Fleet Card. Meanwhile, with the ExxonMobil BusinessPro Card, you’ll also get ExxonMobil Rewards+ Points and loyalty benefits that can translate into additional savings, a feature that BP’s cards do not offer.

Our Methodology: How Did We Review BP Fuel Cards?