BURLINGTON, Vt. -- A class-action lawsuit charges a group of gasoline retailers of conspiring to fix the price of fuel at artificially high levels in Vermont.
The law firms of Bailey Glasser LLP and The Burlington Law Practice PLLC filed the suit in the Superior Court of Chittenden County alleging long-lasting agreements by defendants R.L. Vallee Inc., SB Collins Inc., Champlain Farms/Wesco Inc., and Champlain Inc. (Champlain Oil) to fix the price of wholesale and retail gasoline in northwestern Vermont.
The suit has been filed on behalf of “all citizens and businesses of the state of Vermont who purchased unleaded gasoline from June 1, 2005, to the present, either from any gasoline station owned by the defendants in the class area or from any gasoline station the defendants supplied at wholesale in the class area.”
Tony Cairns, president of Champlain Oil, told CSP Daily News that the company has not yet been served in the case, and a representative for R.L. Vallee said the company has no comment at this time. SB Collins and Champlain Farms/Wesco did not respond to a CSP Daily News request for comment by press time.
There have been multiple hearings and investigations into the high cost of gas in Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle counties, including a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) study and a congressional investigation by the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources.
The FTC concluded that gas prices in Greater Burlington in late June 2012 were 10 to 43 cents per gallon higher than reliable computer models would predict.
The four companies control about 64% of the retail gas stations in the three northwestern counties and dominate the wholesale market, the law firms said.
“The manner in which these companies sell gasoline to the citizens of Vermont is illegal, anti-consumer and wrong,” said Michael Murphy, an attorney for Bailey Glasser.
“By eliminating the competition between them, the largest wholesale and retail providers of gasoline in Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle Counties were able to realize outsized profits and deprive Vermonters of the benefits of a free and fair market,” said John Roddy, an attorney with Bailey Glasser.
The law firms claim that in an effort to maintain their “cartel,” the defendants have shown a willingness to freely engage in “aggressive and cynical” lobbying and legal efforts through the use of Vermont Act 250 under the guise of strident environmentalism. For example, they allege that the defendants have used Vermont’s environmental laws to prevent Wal-Mart and Costco from entering the market and have purchased gas stations only to remove the pumps and subsequently list the property at a reduced price.
Using FTC estimates, the lawsuit alleges the improper profit earned by these companies may top $100 million in the past 10 years.
During the course of state and federal inquiries, representatives of the four companies have been unable to provide adequate or reasonable explanations for the high prices and profits in this region, the law firms said.
Saint Albans, Vt.-based R.L. Vallee has 60 retail locations. SB Collins, also based in Saint Albans, has 44 gas stations. South Burlington, Vt.-based Champlain Farms/Wesco has 45 retail outlets, and Champlain oil, also based in South Burlington, has 132 gas stations.
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