I know this isn't a woodworking post, but I thought it was worth passing on.


Please see below and verify your gas receipts when you gas up.



Cheating at the gas pumps (PRINT OUT YOUR RECEIPTS!!!)

This email was sent to me by a friend whose cousin is the LA fire
captain.

This is true. It happened to them three weeks ago somewhere in Pomona on
our way to Pechanga. The pump should have totaled @ $68.00 (and change).
When the receipt was printed, and she checked it was $ 77.00 (and
change)..

She got mad, went inside the store, asked for a calculator and let them
do the math. They refunded her. she told them that if they cheat, they
had better make it right. Normally, her husband would skip printing the
receipt. Not her..

We saw on the news the other night that this is happening everywhere.

Brian pumped exactly one gallon of gas. The price did not match the cost
of one gallon. It was higher. He went inside and complained, got a
refund.

There is also a number on each pump that you can call and complain.

This is a true story, so read it carefully.

On April 24, 2008, I stopped at a BP gas station in GA. My truck's gas
gauge was on 1/4 of a tank. I use the mid-grade, which was priced at
$3.71 per gallon.. When my tank is at this point, it takes somewhere
around 14 gallons to fill it up.

When the pump showed 14 gallons had been pumped, I began to slow it
down.
Then, to my surprise, it went to 15, then 16. I even looked under my
truck to see if it was being spilled. It was not.

Then it showed 17 gallons on the pump. It stopped at 18 gallons. This
was
very strange to me, since my truck has only an 18 gallon tank.. I went
on
my way a little confused, then on the evening news I heard a report that
1 out of 4 gas stations had calibrated their pumps to show more gas had
been pumped than a person actually got.

Here is how to check a pump to see if you are getting the right amount:

Whichever grade you are using, put EXACTLY 10 GALLONS in your tank, then
look at the dollar amount. If the dollar amount is not EXACTLY 10 times
the price of the fuel you have chosen, then the pumps are rigged.

In my case, as I said, the mid-grade was $3.71 9/10 per gallon; my
dollar
amount for 10 gallons should have been $37.19. I wish I had checked the
pump. It doesn't matter where you pump gas..please check the 10 gallon
price. If you do find a station that is cheating, contact the state
Agriculture Department, and direct your comments to the
Commissioner....the info is on the gas pumps.

Please don't delete this until you have sent it to all people in your
address book. We need to put a stop to this outrageous cheating of
customers. The gas companies are making enough profits at honest rates.

"Joe" wrote in message
...
I know this isn't a woodworking post, but I thought it was worth passing
on.


Please see below and verify your gas receipts when you gas up.



Cheating at the gas pumps (PRINT OUT YOUR RECEIPTS!!!)




This does happen, I had it happen at a local station. 10 gal tank on truck
will hold 12 gal when completely dry. Tank was 3/4 empty when I went in to
fill up, I should have needed between 6 to 8 gal depending on how the gauge
was feeling that day and how closely I had read it. Gas pump read 12 gal
when I had finished. I complained to clerk and they took my name and info.
They also shut down the pump. Two days latter I stopped in again and was
given a refund for the difference in what I should have gotten and a free
soft drink. They were also giving out refunds to anyone with a receipt from
that pump. Explanation was that the pump had been given its regular checkup
and and had been set wrong by the Dept of Ag's guy. It's not always the
stations fault and most honest ones will do the right thing if given the
chance.

It "can" happen. The original poster was trying to insinuate that Gas
staions do tis on purpose and are all out to defraud you. It's rare,
and when pumps malfunction, it's just as likely to be in your favor,
as it is to work against you.

I think statistically, a car's gas gauge and it's primitive sending
unit is probabaly far less reliable than gas station pumps, which at
least get inspected and calibrated occasionally.

When was the last time you checked the accuracy of your gas gauge?
Dioes it even read out in any meaningful increments? Can you determine
the difference between 5.5 gallons in it and 6 gallons? That would
only require accuracy to within a half a gallon, for cry-eye. My 2008
car has used half a tank when it reads 3/4 full. That's completely
normal.

I'd be far more concerned about the guy at the deli counter with his
thumb on the scale when he weighs your cold cuts.


I agree on the accuracy of gas gauges. My 25 year old model can be off by as
much as 10 gal for a 10 gal tank and at best is only a guess. I do keep a
rough log of mileage though and so have a idea of about what I need to fill
the tank. In the case I mentioned the pump was off by about 25%, a major
screwup. It just goes to show that very few people pay attention to what is
going on around them since I was the first to mention it and it had been
calibrated the day before. Yes if it had been reading the other way and I
caught it I would have brought it to their notice, but would have been much
less likely to notice it thinking it was a faulty gauge or bad bookkeeping
on my part. Around here a charge of "gouging" will quickly bring in the
state boys with an accountant to check your books, never a happy event.
What I fail to understand is how gas bought from the same distributor and
hauled on the same trucks can vary by as much as 30 cents in a 5 mile
stretch of road. I seems that the stations that sell the most ( by an
interstate or so forth) charge the most. There is even one boat dock a
short distance from me that has gas on the lake for less then the regular
stations, even 5 cents less then the pumps on the road at the same dock, and
close to 75 cents to a dollar less the marina about 4 miles away. I do not
understand how gas is priced at all.

wrote:

It "can" happen. The original poster was trying to insinuate that Gas
staions do tis on purpose and are all out to defraud you. It's rare,
and when pumps malfunction, it's just as likely to be in your favor,
as it is to work against you.

Moreover he claimed a news report said a quarter of all the stations in the
country are intentionally setting their pumps to cheat the customer--of
course no link or documentation was offered in support. This whole thing
reads like a classic urban myth chain e-mail. I'm amazed at how many people
buy into these things, it's like falling for a Nigerian 419 scam, how can
anyone be that dumb not to spot the warnings signs?

" ... The original poster was trying to insinuate that Gas
staions do tis on purpose and are all out to defraud you ..."


H have personally never experienced this nor know anyone who has.

However, here is my two cents ...

Recently the Cincinnati area endured days without power as a result of
Ike. Over 1.2 million lost power. On the very first day the power
started going out, gas prices rose as high as .40 cents a gallon in my
area. That's from $3.59 to $3.99 within hours. Odd considering gas
prices in areas with power did not rise.

Personally I feel warm and fuzzy knowing my business neighbors
extended all they could to help us in a time of crisis by charging
more money to fuel our emergency vehicles and generators.

If I had known, I would have stayed on the east coast where gas was
$3.30/gal and had power for the week to enjoy a hot shower.

After years of suffering power outages, often weekly, Cincinnati is
NOW investigating underground electric options. As a favorite comedian
of mine once said, ".. things that make you go, hmmm..".


Train your mind to test every thought, ideology,
train of reasoning, and claim to truth.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Casper"
Newsgroups: rec.woodworking
Sent: Friday, September 26, 2008 10:35 AM
Subject: for your information


" ... The original poster was trying to insinuate that Gas
stations do tis on purpose and are all out to defraud you ..."


snip

In the old days you just bought gas at any temperature in the winter you got
more gas for your money in the summer less now they do it at 70 degrees