Scammed

… actual prices “ultimate”: $2.349, “silver”: $2.279, “regular”: $2.179
Yesterday, a group of us were heading out to our weekly pickup game and stopped for gas on the way out of town. Pleased that gas prices have dropped recently I pulled into the BP gas bar on the north side of Fruitville to fill up at their listed $2.179 per gal. At the pump was a pleasant surprise … their high end pump was listing $2.179 while the other two levels were blank. My lucky day … so I filled up thinking nothing of it. Heck, I remember similar situations back when I worked at Chevron where we dropped the prices on our high-end as the low-end gas ran out …
Now, when the tank was full and I was recording things in our log and $31.01 for 13 gallons seemed “off” … so I matched it against previous fill ups and sure enough … $31 matched closer to prices recorded at $2.60 / gal — though there was an extra gallon or so of fuel this time … still, definitely not $2.179 / gallon. So I went inside to grab a printed receipt … and sure enough … $2.349 per gallon. Ouch! That is not what I was suppose to be paying … “Ahhh, I have informed the company about it but there is nothing I can do at this time” was what I got from the pump jockey behind the counter — and I am not going to fight with him. So, off to the game.
Melissa and I returned later that night to get more information, talk to management, etc … now that we had more time (and yes, the issue had not been addressed). Again, “nothing we could do” was what we were told. In fact, the guy told us that the “owners” of the BP gas bar (which was not directly affiliated with the store) had told them NOT to put up any signs or notifications regarding any issues (though not for this specific issue alone). But, “… the manager will be back tomorrow morning”.
So, Melissa returned this morning to find the pumps “out of order” (notice posted and handles taped). “Good, they acknowledged the problem”, she thought. But, on talking with the manager received a, “I don’t know what your talking about.” – “I have heard no such thing” – “The pumps are working fine”. (Obviously neglecting to look outside). However, when Melissa requested the $2.60 difference returned she stated … “Oh! Thats it! Fine!”. So … Melissa was happy. However, I felt this story needed to be heard further.
First, the pump was acting that way for most of the day (since we returned a couple times to check) … and possibly longer since we only noticed it at the time we filled up. The managing owners were repeatedly phoned, according to the staff at the store. And the store, or gas bar, did not close those pumps until after we logged a more official complaint. So, how many poor souls filled their car on the notion of the “good deal”? Could this be why the gas bar lists almost $0.05 lower than the other stations in the area? Is this just an honest mistake (as I hope it is)? However, it is prudent for the owners to properly notify the customers. A simple (non-digital) sign posting the correct prices would have worked … or … close the pump until repair crew can do their thing.
Now, I understand, in the end I received high-end gas for the price of the high-end gas … but … it did appear as if the other options were empty or out-of-order, and that is what I based my selection off of.
Honest mistakes happen … character is decided not on the mistakes but on how you deal with them. So … BP Global, the management staff of your Sarasota locations is giving you a bad name. A name that, while unknown to me before moving to Florida, was building a good reputation. $2.60 is not a big deal … but customer service is.

Follow