Having read you letters column in last Saturday's Telegraph about pre-paying for fuel before you fill up at fuel stations, I thought you might be interested in my experience of this. It was in 1981 in Chicago, I took my hire car to the fuel pump, it didn't start pumping petrol. I looked across to the attendant in his kiosk, who told me I had to pay up front by shouting. I got a wallet, and walked over the twenty or so yards. Two kids on a bike with a gun, then shot forward from goodness only knows where, and mugged me at gunpoint, as they knew I must have cash on me. These were the days before credit cards were widespread. The guy in the kiosk, behind his glass screen, just simply shrugged as I was obviously some kind of stupid sap, so I returned to my car, got some more cash out, drove over to the guy, paid without getting out of the car, drove back to the pump, put my cash away, locked the car, filled up, drove back over to collect my change, without getting out, and drove off. Whether this sort of thing will happen here I sincerely hope not.