Method and system for detection of a fuel card usage exception

• US 9,563,893 B2
• Filed: 10/15/2013
• Issued: 02/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Corpay Technologies Operating Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Fleetcor Technologies Incorporated (NHI-2, LLC)
• Inventors: Lamb, Jeffrey D., Cole, Jason C., Johnson, Max L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Niquette, Robert R
• Application Number:
  US14/054,279
• Publication Number:
  US 20140129426A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,211 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4016 involving fraud or risk level assessment in transaction processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply

Abstract

Determining a fuel card usage exception with the use of a computer that receives fuel card transaction data responsive to a fuel purchase event. The fuel card transaction data identifies a quantity of fuel purchased for a vehicle using a fuel card. In addition, the computer receives first fuel level data and second fuel level data of the vehicle that identifies a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank of the vehicle prior to a fuel purchase event and after a fuel purchase event respectively. The computer can determine an exception associated with the fuel purchase event based on the fuel card transaction data, the first fuel level data, and the second fuel level data. Responsive to detecting an exception associated with the fuel purchase event, the computer may generate an alert and transmit the alert for presentation by a computing device of a user.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a server, fuel card transaction data responsive to a fuel purchase event using a fuel card, the fuel card transaction data identifying a quantity of fuel purchased for a vehicle;

receiving, by the server, first fuel level data of the vehicle, the first fuel level data identifying a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event;

receiving, by the server, second fuel level data of the vehicle, the second fuel level data identifying the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event;

determining, by the server, an exception associated with the fuel purchase event based on the fuel card transaction data, the first fuel level data, and the second fuel level data,

wherein determining the exception associated with the fuel purchase event comprises;

determining, by the server, that at least a portion of the fuel is purchased using a financial services card that is different from the fuel card based on a determination that the quantity of the fuel purchased is less than the difference between the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event and the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event; and

determining, by the server, that a pattern of using the financial services card is repeated, and

responsively, reporting, by the server, a sparing usage or a lack of usage of the fuel card based on the repeated pattern of using the financial services card; and

responsive to determining the occurrence of the exception, generating, by the server, an alert for presentation by a computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the exception further comprises determining that the quantity of fuel purchased is greater than a fuel capacity of the fuel tank associated with the vehicle.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the exception further comprises determining that the quantity of fuel purchased is greater than the difference between the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event and the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying a pattern associated with the fuel purchase event based on a plurality of recordings of the fuel card transaction data, the first fuel level data, and the second fuel level data.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the exception further comprises determining a variation in the pattern associated with the fuel purchase event.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising reporting, by the server, the sparing usage or lack of usage of the fuel card.

7. A system comprising:

a communication network; and

a computer coupled to the communication network and configured to;

receive fuel card transaction data responsive to a fuel purchase event using a fuel card, wherein the fuel card transaction data identifies a quantity of fuel purchased for a vehicle using the fuel card;

calculate a quantity of fuel present in the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event based on a gas mileage of the vehicle;

receive second fuel level data of the vehicle, the second fuel level data identifying the quantity of fuel present in the vehicle after the fuel purchase event;

determine an exception associated with the fuel purchase event based on the fuel card transaction data, the calculated quantity of fuel, and the second fuel level data,

wherein to determine the exception associated with the fuel purchase event, the computer is configured to;

determine that at least a portion of the fuel is purchased using a financial services card that is different from the fuel card based on a determination that the quantity of the fuel purchased is less than the difference between the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event and the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event; and

determine that a pattern of using the financial services card is repeated, and

responsively, report a sparing usage or a lack of usage of the fuel card based on the repeated pattern of using the financial services card; and

responsive to determining the occurrence of the exception, generating, by the server, an alert.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the computer is further configured to determine that the quantity of fuel purchased is greater than a fuel capacity of the fuel tank associated with the vehicle.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the computer is further configured to determine that the quantity of fuel purchased is greater than the difference between the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event and the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the computer is further configured to identify a pattern associated with the fuel purchase event based on a plurality of recordings of the fuel card transaction data, the first fuel level data, and the second fuel level data.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the computer is further configured to determining a variation in the pattern associated with the fuel purchase event.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein each of the first fuel level data and the second fuel level data is received from a vehicle bus of the vehicle.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a server, an authorization request at a first time to authorize a fuel purchase event using a fuel card, wherein the authorization request comprises data that identifies a quantity of fuel purchased for a vehicle using the fuel card;

receiving, by the server, first fuel level data of the vehicle, the first fuel level data collected by a vehicle bus of the vehicle and identifying a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank of the vehicle prior to the fuel purchase event;

receiving, by the server, second fuel level data of the vehicle, the second fuel level data collected by a vehicle bus of the vehicle and identifying the quantity of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle after the fuel purchase event;

determining, by the server, an exception associated with the fuel purchase event based on the authorization request by comparing the quantity of fuel purchased using the fuel card to a difference between the first fuel level data and the second fuel level data; and

responsive to determining the occurrence of the exception, generating, by the server, an alert based on the authorization request in a timeframe contemporaneous with the fuel purchase event;

responsive to a fuel purchase event using the fuel card, receiving, by the server, fuel card transaction data as a batch data at a second time that is later than the first time, the fuel card transaction data identifying the quantity of fuel purchased for a vehicle;

determining an exception associated with the fuel purchase event based on the fuel card transaction data by comparing the quantity of fuel purchased as provided by the fuel card transaction data to the difference between the first fuel level data and the second fuel level data;

validating, by the server, an accuracy of the exception that is determined based on the authorization request by comparing the exception that is determined based on the fuel card transaction data with the exception that is determined based on the authorization data; and

responsive to a determination that the exception that is determined based on the fuel card transaction data does not match the exception that is determined based on the authorization data, updating the alert that is generated based on the authorization request to reflect the exception that is determined based on the fuel card transaction data.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising transmitting, by the server, the alert based on at least one of the authorization request and the fuel card transaction data for presentation by a computing device.