HARTFORD, Conn. -- Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal announced Monday that six gasoline stations five owned by Cumberland Farms Inc. will pay the state almost $45,000 to settle allegations of gasoline price gouging after Hurricane Katrina.
Canton, Mass.-based Cumberland Farms, a subsidiary of Gulf Oil, will pay $43,891, and Bereket Texaco LLC of Bridgeport will pay $1,000.
The stations at times quadrupled their per-gallon profit in the weeks after the August 29, 2005, storm, upping prices far higher than [image-nocss] justified by the storm's impact on gasoline production and delivery, according to Blumenthal.
Our investigation showed that these gas retailers price-gouged consumers to make quadruple per-gallon profits, Blumenthal said. This result sends a message: Connecticut has zero tolerance for price-gouging and will prosecute it. I will continue to aggressively fight lawbreaking at the pump, working with federal and other states' officials.
Anyone attempting to exploit the Alaskan North Slope shutdown should be on notice that we will be vigorous and vigilant in enforcing the law.
Per-gallon profits at the five stations ranged from 1% to 9% in the days before Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, records obtained by the attorney general's office show. They skyrocketed to as high as 27% about two weeks after the storm, according to records.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.