If you’ve ever filled up your gas tank in Buffalo during a January blizzard or stood outside a Manhattan gas station during a nor’easter, you’ve probably wondered: Why can’t I just clip this handle and wait in my car like normal people in normal states?
The answer is frustrating, antiquated, and quintessentially New York: because it’s illegal.
That’s right. While drivers in all 49 other states can use those little metal clips—called hold-open clips or trigger locks—to keep gas flowing hands-free, New Yorkers are legally required to stand there, freezing, fingers going numb, manually squeezing the pump handle until their tank is full.
A Law Stuck in the 1980s
The ban dates back to the early 1980s, when New York first allowed self-service gas stations to proliferate. Concerned about fire safety, state regulators wrote the restriction into the fire code. The worry was that hold-open clips might lead to fuel spills, overflow accidents, or drivers walking away from pumping vehicles and creating dangerous situations.
At the time, it probably seemed like a reasonable precaution. Gas pump technology was still evolving, and state officials wanted to err on the side of caution. Massachusetts had a similar ban for years.
But here’s the thing: it’s 2025 now. Modern gas pumps are equipped with automatic shut-off mechanisms that stop the flow of fuel the moment your tank is full. They have attitude sensors that cut off fuel if the nozzle falls or tips too far. The safety concerns that justified the ban four decades ago have been addressed by technology that’s now standard across the country.
Massachusetts figured this out about a decade ago and repealed their ban. New York didn’t get the memo.
The Winter Torture Test
For New York drivers, the ban is more than a minor inconvenience—it’s a seasonal punishment.
Picture this: It’s 15 degrees outside. The wind chill makes it feel like zero. You pull into a gas station after work, and now you have to stand there for five, six, maybe seven minutes if you’re filling up an SUV, holding a freezing metal handle while your fingers go numb. Your gloves don’t help much. The wind cuts right through your coat. And you can’t even get back in your car to warm up for a minute without the pump shutting off.
Meanwhile, drivers in Vermont, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut—states that get just as cold—clip their handles and sit comfortably in their heated vehicles while their tanks fill.
One New York driver who travels frequently put it perfectly: “I had traveled for like a year and a half, and every state I traveled to, it was like, the ease of being able to pump your gas without having to worry about it.” Then she came home to New York’s heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures, where she’s forced to stand outside holding the pump.
It’s Not Just About Cold Weather
While winter makes the ban particularly miserable, the inconvenience extends beyond seasonal discomfort.
For elderly New Yorkers, holding a pump handle for several minutes can be physically exhausting. For people with arthritis or limited hand strength, it can be genuinely painful. For parents with young children in the car, it means choosing between leaving kids unattended or trying to wrangle them outside in the cold.
Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, who chairs the Assembly’s Committee on People with Disabilities, has been vocal about this aspect. He points out that for individuals with disabilities or limited mobility, holding a gas pump handle can be “physically difficult—or even impossible.” The ban creates an accessibility barrier for something as basic as refueling a car.
And let’s be honest: even for able-bodied New Yorkers in mild weather, it’s just annoying. Why should we have to stand there when literally everyone else in the country doesn’t?
The Renegade Gas Stations
In a beautiful act of civil disobedience, some New York gas stations have simply ignored the law. A few have quietly kept their hold-open clips intact, becoming local legends among drivers who seek them out specifically.
One Hudson Valley driver described the experience like discovering buried treasure: “Gently letting go of the pump handle, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The gas was still flowing into the car.” He vowed to return to that station specifically, especially in winter, to enjoy what he called “luxurious, hands-free pumping.”
These renegade stations are technically breaking the law, but enforcement has been spotty at best. The fire code leaves it up to local fire marshals to enforce, which means adherence varies wildly across the state. In some areas, you might find two stations a block apart—one with clips, one without.
Change Might Be Coming
There’s finally some hope on the horizon. State Senator Joseph Griffo and Assemblyman Santabarbara have introduced legislation that would bring New York into the 21st century by allowing gas stations to install hold-open clips.
The proposed law would make New York the final state in the nation to allow this basic convenience. It would include modern safety requirements: pumps would need to meet current safety standards, and signs would remind drivers to stay within ten feet and in plain sight of their vehicle while refueling.
Griffo, a Republican from Oneida County, introduced the bill after hearing complaints from constituents who suffered through last winter’s extreme cold. Santabarbara, a Rotterdam Democrat, is pushing it as an accessibility and dignity issue.
“This bill would bring New York State in line with the rest of the country, would protect the elderly and other New Yorkers by limiting their exposure to harsh and potentially dangerous weather conditions when pumping gas, and would rein in government overreach,” Griffo said.
The bipartisan support is encouraging. When both parties agree that a law is outdated and burdensome, there’s a decent chance it might actually change.
The Opposition
Not everyone is thrilled about the prospect of bringing back hold-open clips. Some gas station managers worry about distracted drivers. One Buffalo Speedway associate manager expressed concern that customers forget the nozzle is attached while they’re on their phones, then drive off and damage the pumps.
It’s a valid concern, but it’s worth noting that this problem hasn’t caused the other 49 states to ban the devices. Gas stations across America have learned to manage the occasional drive-off with insurance and better signage. And modern breakaway connectors in fuel hoses are specifically designed to disconnect safely when someone drives away with the nozzle still attached.
The question is whether New York should continue punishing all drivers—including the elderly, disabled, and cold—because some people might be careless.
The Bigger Picture
At its core, this isn’t really about gas pumps. It’s about how regulation works—or doesn’t work—in New York.
The hold-open clip ban is a perfect example of a law that made sense in its time but has long outlived its purpose. Technology changed. Safety improved. Every other state adapted. New York didn’t.
And now, forty-plus years later, millions of New Yorkers are still standing in subzero temperatures, fingers frozen to pump handles, while their government maintains a fire code written when people were still listening to Duran Duran on cassette tapes.
The fact that it’s taken this long to even consider repealing the ban speaks to a larger problem: the difficulty of unwinding regulation once it’s on the books, even when everyone agrees it no longer makes sense.
The Path Forward
If the Griffo-Santabarbara bill passes, individual gas stations would have the choice to install hold-open clips. It wouldn’t be mandatory—stations could stick with manual-only pumps if they prefer. But at least New Yorkers would have options.
That seems like a reasonable, common-sense solution. Give businesses the freedom to decide. Let consumers choose which stations they prefer. Trust that modern safety technology and basic common sense will prevent the apocalyptic fuel spills that regulators feared in 1982.
Until then, New York drivers will keep doing what they’ve been doing: standing in the cold, cursing under their breath, and wondering why their state government thinks they’re less capable of safely pumping gas than literally everyone else in America.
If you’re a New York driver who’s tired of frozen fingers and outdated regulations, you can contact your state representatives and let them know you support the bill. Or you can do what savvy New Yorkers have been doing for years: find one of those renegade gas stations that never removed their clips, and enjoy a few minutes of luxurious, warm-handed rebellion.
Your fingers will thank you.
Want to Support the Bill? Here’s How to Help
If you’d like to voice your support for allowing hold-open clips at New York gas stations, there are several ways to make your voice heard:
Sign the Petition: Join thousands of New Yorkers calling for this change by signing the petition at: https://c.org/6NNZ5kMnhW
Contact the Bill Sponsors Directly: You can also reach out to the legislators sponsoring this bipartisan effort:
State Senator Joseph A. Griffo (Republican, District 53)
- Albany Office: 172 State Street, Capitol Building Room 414, Albany, NY 12247
- Phone: (518) 455-3334
- District Office: 207 Genesee Street, Room 408, Utica, NY 13501
- Phone: (315) 793-9072
- Website: nysenate.gov/senators/joseph-griffo
Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara (Democrat, District 111)
- Albany Office: Legislative Office Building, Albany, NY 12248
- Phone: (518) 455-5197
- District Office: 29 E. Main Street, Amsterdam, NY 12010
- Phone: (518) 843-0227
- Website: assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Angelo-Santabarbara
A quick phone call or email letting them know you support Senate Bill S7418 can make a difference. When constituents speak up about issues that affect their daily lives—even something as seemingly small as gas pump clips—legislators listen.