Frequently Asked Questions
Sound Payments Petro Solutions cost-effectively solves EMV at the pump with Sound Easy Pump™, a retrofit, semi-integrated payment solution that supports contactless via card tap or NFC, QR code scanning, PIN-on- glass, MSR, and EMV chip and PIN.
Installation is simple. It only involves only one power cord and eliminates the need to purchase new pumps and close stations for installation. The direct-to-processor transaction connection uses point-to-point encryption, which is more secure and will eliminate many types of fraud that are common today. In addition, the platform is flexible so it can easily support future innovations.

As a station owner, why should I consider upgrading?
The push to support EMV came from a change of rules in 2015 where merchants and acquirers are liable for all applicable counterfeit fraud associated with EMV chip transactions if their inside POS terminals do not support EMV technology. However, the mandate was pushed back for pay-at-the-pump at gas stations due to the extra complexity to support it. As of April 2021, it is required for all gas stations to have EMV readers at their pumps. If they don’t have EMV readers, the station owner is responsible for any chargebacks incurred.
Now, any chargebacks that happen at non EMV compliant gas pumps, the station owners are responsible for the loss.
Even if there is video evidence of the fraudster signing, your claim will be denied every time. Your business is something you have worked hard for. Like locking your doors at night, upgrading for EMV is a security measure to protect your business.
We built the Sound Easy Pump™ model to provide a cost-effective option to solve this challenge.
The cost to upgrade with Sound Easy Pump™ is significantly lower than other options in the market (see the pricing question below for more details). In addition, the direct-to-processor transaction connection uses point-to-point encryption to secure the communication and eliminate many types of fraud that are common today.
I haven’t received any chargebacks yet; why should I upgrade?
Just because you are currently not receiving any chargebacks does not mean that you won’t tomorrow, next week or next month. As we move farther from the deadline and more stations are upgraded, the pool fraudsters can target moves to those who have not updated. It is more likely that your station will become a target if your pumps are not upgraded. When you do begin to receive chargebacks and try to fight them, and you do not have EMV in place, you will lose the chargeback case every time. In addition to chargebacks, processors are also fining those stores who have yet to update and even removing them from their networks to eliminate any possibilities for fraud. Upgrading your business now will save your business from the potential fraud and ensure you don’t run into any hassles with your processor.
As a petroleum industry marketer, servicer or installer, why should I care about this?
Sound Payments solutions are cloud-based and simple to install. Once a petroleum industry marketer/jobber is trained and fully educated, they can sell our product to a station. Onsite installations are completed by traditional fuel jobber or pump servicing company and most of the installation (as well as updates) can be completed remotely via the cloud. Retrofit installations are simple and involve only one power cord. It eliminates the need to purchase new pumps and close stations for installation. Usually only 1-2 qualified people are required onsite at an install, taking minutes and a few hours vs days to complete; meaning that you can have a faster turnaround and schedule more appointments as a servicing company.
What is the difference between full-integration and semi-integration?
Full Integration
Today, most existing U.S. implementations in petroleum are a full integration, where the payment application runs on the forecourt controller, separate from the payment terminal. The payment terminal receives the PCI cardholder data and passes it to the payment application for processing bringing the entire solution into PCI scope for auditing.
✅ Integration: Further, full integration may not continue to work with your existing equipment, and any time
something changes now or in the future, it can require a new certification across each piece of the solution affected.
Semi-Integration
With semi-integration, the payment application runs directly on the payment terminal. So, all card processing, encryption and security is handled by the payment terminal, which links directly to the secure payment processor.
✅ Simplified integration: Since the payment application is separate from the payment terminal, this implementation minimizes the station for PCI scope. The entire system security, both indoor and outdoor is removed from possible fraud as this configuration removes the bad guys ability to skim the PCI data in transport.
✅ End-to-end Security: It is also more secure as the data is encrypted at the time of insertion and goes directly from the reader to the payment processor/host. In addition, the payment device at the pump is also hardened and PCI certified , so if anyone tries to tamper with the device, it will stop working.
✅ Supports Future Innovation: Creates a flexible platform to support future innovations by separating the payment terminal from the rest of the system. Provides more flexibility because it’s independent and yet compatible with many pump models and forecourt controllers and does not require new certifications for each change in the feature set.
✅ Contactless Capabilities: It supports QR code scanning, PIN-on-glass, MSR, EMV chipand PIN, NFC for Apple Pay and Google Pay, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, and includes a built-in security camera. Contactless capabilities are a major benefit for the purpose of eliminating touch points but also convenience for customers.
✅ Simplified Installation: Being semi-integrated the approach minimizes downtime because you can upgrade one pump at a time. You don’t need to take the whole station down to convert to EMV.
How long will it take to upgrade?
The semi-integrated approach minimizes downtime because you can upgrade one pump at a time. Each pump’s upgrade process takes about hour to complete. You don’t need to take the whole station down to convert to EMV. There is no ripping up concrete and construction mess.
What are my affordable options in terms of hardware, labor and ongoing SAAS fees?
Stations have few options, and they are looking to their merchant services and/or pump servicing companies for a solution. These solutions are based on three factors: What equipment you currently have, what you want to do in the feature, and your budget. Here’s a comparison:
1. Buy a new pump and complete system: Of course, this is what the pump manufacturers want you to do, and you may not have a choice if your pump is too old to support EMV technology.
- Benefits: You know your new system should work.
- Cons: Cost; it can be costly for the new hardware, software and downtime to upgrade.
- A four-pump C-Store to upgrade equipment this way:
- Downtime, up to 1 month for infrastructure
- The cost of 4 new fuel dispensers @ $18,000 = $72,000.
- Monthly SaaS ≈ $1,000 depending on your software
- This does not include hoses, nozzles and plumbing fixtures and pump software configuration services. Inground tanks and construction costs that can reach upwards of ~$140,000.
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- This also may not include labor, permits and other
- Lost in-store revenue and customer satisfaction due to outage from ongoing construction – incalculable!
Total cost to the gas station owner to convert:
>$200,000
2. Retrofit your existing pump and system: A retrofitinvolves upgrading your existing pump and system to accept EMV.
- Benefits: The major pump manufacturers have retrofit kits that work on some of their newer pumps.
- Cons: These kits are relatively expensive and require you to upgrade your payment and potentially your POS software. Further these kits don’t work on all pumps.
- A four-pump C-Store to upgrade equipment this way:
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- Cost can be between $9,000 per side of the pump
- Monthly SaaS ≈ $1,000.
Total cost to the gas station owner: >$50,000
3. Sound Easy Pump Retrofitting: Third-party companies like Sound Payments have developed less expensive retrofit kits. Our retrofit solution doesn’t involve closing the station or ripping up concrete or other potentially the other extraneous costs associated with other solutions. Best of all it is 1/3 of the cost of other solutions!
- Benefits: Semi-integrated, independent of the pump and POS provider, and separates the challenges of PCI for payments from the instore systems, providing a safer solution security-wise via end-to-end encryption.
- A four-pump C-Store to upgrade equipment this way:
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- Costs can be $3,000 or less per pump
- Retrofit to existing equipment (works with most pumps & forecourt controllers).
- Use existing POS
- Ability to phase upgrades to EMV by individual pump fueling
- Eliminate PCI Scope by removing sensitive data from your in-store
Total cost to the gas station owner: 1/3 the cost of comparable solutions
Do you work with branded stations?
We are currently working with Clark, Liberty, Sinclair, and 19 Petroleum. We continue to pursue new certifications based on opportunity.
What processors do you work with?
We are currently certified with First Data and Heartland and will continue to pursue new certifications based on opportunity.
Do I need to update my in-store POS system hardware?
No. This is not a requirement. However, if you need to update your in-store POS system software and need EMV at the pump, we have a partner that can help you with that.
How can a station or marketer learn more?
To learn more about Sound Easy Pump solution, visit our website at soundpayments.com, call us directly at 844-319-5635 or email us at petrosales@soundpayments.com. . Additionally, we upload informational videos and webinars to our YouTube Channel, Sound Payments.