ATLANTA -- Consumer complaints in Georgia about inaccurate or fraudulent gasoline dispensers have risen along with fuel prices, reported The Florida Times Union. Calls reporting problems at gas stations jumped to 1,053 in the first five months of 2008, up 65% from the same period in 2007, according to the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which inspects and certifies the accuracy of dispensers. Complaints run the gamut, from allegations that the fuel has been watered down or is the wrong octane to complaints about being shorted at the pump. But of all the complaints—1,415 in 2007—[image-nocss] inspectors found only 5% were valid, and 70% of inspections continue to reveal that pumps are giving customers more than they paid for, spokesperson Yao Seidu said.
One of the complaints resulted in the closure of all three Cisco stores along Interstate 95 in Camden County in February and resulted in a Georgia Bureau of Investigation probe. State inspectors found that pumps at Cisco Travel Plazas were dispensing a quart less for every five gallons the pump gauges indicated. After being closed for months after the owner failed to pay half of a $500,000 penalty, the stations are open under new ownership.
Ethanol may be behind some customers' complaints about getting less gasoline than they paid for, Jim Tudor, president of the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores, told the newspaper. GACS represents about 2,200 stores.
Gasoline containing a 10% blend of ethanol gives roughly 1.5% to 3% less fuel efficiency than nonblended fuel, according to the report. With high gasoline prices turning attention to odometers and fuel gauges, motorists may be noticing the diminished miles per gallon, especially as more stations have begun using ethanol blends in the past year, Tudor said.
"Most consumers don't realize you get less gas mileage with an ethanol product," he said.
Oil companies are under a federal mandate to add ethanol to gasoline. Nearly half of the gasoline sold in the nation contains ethanol, the report said, citing the American Coalition for Ethanol.
Some motorists, like Bill Carey of Waynesboro, take matters into their own hands. He said he uses a calculator to check whether the pump gave him what it says it does. "It's pretty much honest," Carey told the paper. He said he was not aware ethanol-blended gasoline reduces fuel efficiency.
The Department of Agriculture's 24 fuel inspectors oversee 141,659 pumps at 12,279 stations. Each station is inspected once every 18 months, but complaints trigger an automatic inspection.
Inspectors allow pumps a 3.3-oz. margin of error in a five- gallon sale. The station gets a written violation and three days to correct the problem if the calibration is off. Pumps are shut down if they are 7.75 oz. off.
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