Fuel price scam??

[Yellow_Festiva]

This happened over the weekend.

Drove past an independent that I don't usually frequent and saw 'premium diesel' for 147.9 cpl.

I pulled in, and started pumping from the regular diesel bowser (assuming it would be cheaper than the fancy stuff by a few cents).

Noticed it was actually 2cpl more than premium. I stopped pumping (only put in a few litres) and called over an attendant.

I said, mate, you got your prices on the pump mixed up I think. He went in and spoke to the cashier then came back and said yeah no worries he will charge you the lower price.

Filled her up and went to pay. The cashier insisted I pay the higher price. I said what station charges MORE for regular than premium? It's always the other way around. He said that they were running a promotion and discounting the premium diesel on that day.

I flipped my lid - I already had an argument with an Ebay mongrel the same morning trying to get my to pay delivery for an item that was 'accidently' listed for collection and now this.

He kept arguing that It was my fault for not reading the price on the bowser and that I should have asked for clarification. When I told him I did his response was 'that guy is an idiot, don't worry about what he says'.

Anyway, he kept going on about how I will be charged the full price and I didn't back down. The difference was only around $1 but it was the principal of the matter as I don't believe the 'premium cheaper than regular promotion' BS and I wasn't going to just shrug it off like everyone else did - if they even noticed at all?

He eventually relented and charged me the 'discounted' premium price (it should have been lower but a small win is better than none.

He kept telling me how I was ripping him off and that he made no profit on my purchase. I said you shouldn't be tricking customers into paying more for regular than premium diesel. He also told me not to come back, to which I gladly agreed to as I was walking out.

On the price billboard only 'premium diesel' was being advertised.

What do you guys think? 200 customers a day pumping regular diesel and being charged more than the premium stuff 'by accident' is a tidy little earner.

[Trevor 57]

what happened was GovCo said they were opening up and fuel companies have been hit hard with lock-downs as no-one was driving or flying. They need to get their profits back up. Share holders are cranky

[Citroënbender]

YF, I’m mistrustful of service stations, too. I always raise and hold the nozzle at chest height, visibly clear of my car until the pump has zeroed and the price I anticipate, is displayed. My acceptance of their offer starts when I put the nozzle in and squeeze the trigger.

[Franco Cozzo]

Also seems to be very suspicious how Melbourne's fuel prices just happen to jump 40 cents per litre when lockdowns start coming to an end or announcements of restrictions easing

[CyberWasp]

Every minute of every day is a fuel price scam.

[hayseed]

Originally Posted by CyberWasp

Every minute of every day is a fuel price scam.

^^^^What He said.^^^^

[73 4V XB]

Remember back when the price of a barrel would dictate the price at the bowser.
The fuel crisis raised the price per barrel to $145 and we paid $1:45 a litre.
The price of a barrel is now ~$70-$80 but we’re still paying ridiculously high prices

[slowsnake]

That's why Australia has so many public holidays, or long weekends, it's an excuse to increase the price of fuel!

Our Australian public holiday schedule must be on the big wall in the UAE'S head office, lol.....

[prydey]

So, you didn't check the price, made assumptions, and then got angry because no one else would fix your mistake??

well done champ.

[Adamz Ghia]

Originally Posted by prydey

So, you didn't check the price, made assumptions, and then got angry because no one else would fix your mistake??

well done champ.

He noticed and they said they’d charge him the lower price.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by Adamz Ghia

He noticed and they said they’d charge him the lower price.

Still not seeing where the scam is.

[T3rminator]

Originally Posted by Franco Cozzo

Also seems to be very suspicious how Melbourne's fuel prices just happen to jump 40 cents per litre when lockdowns start coming to an end or announcements of restrictions easing

Whats all the fuss about?

Locked in $1.65 Mobil 98 on the app a week ago. Yesterday, just so happened to be down Bayswater way, and saw another 7-11 station with $1.68 Mobil 98. So filled her up at $1.65, then locked in the $1.68 for another week. Just in time to cruise around metro melb on the weekend.

[T3rminator]

Originally Posted by prydey

Still not seeing where the scam is.

From Merriam-Webster dictionary...

scam verb
scammed; scamming; scams
Definition of scam (Entry 2 of 2)
transitive verb

1: to deceive and defraud (someone)

In this instance, attendant told YF he would be charged lower price. Then when time came to pay, they tried to charge him the higher price. Sounds deceptive to me.

Whether the original pricing structure was a "scam"...that's debatable...IMHO.

[Itsme]

The day the Feds stopped regulating fuel prices and the fuel companies introduced self serve stations "fuel pricing has always been one big scam" and we the public are the suckers.

[hayseed]

Originally Posted by 73 4V XB

Remember back when the price of a barrel would dictate the price at the bowser.
The fuel crisis raised the price per barrel to $145 and we paid $1:45 a litre.
The price of a barrel is now ~$70-$80 but we’re still paying ridiculously high prices

Automatic CPI increases of the Excise, Plus exchange Rate fluctuations put paid to that...

[Trevor 57]

Originally Posted by Itsme

The day the Feds stopped regulating fuel prices and the fuel companies introduced self serve stations "fuel pricing has always been one big scam" and we the public are the suckers.

The Feds will never interfere, wanna know why? they get 10c in every $1, the higher the fuel price goes the more GST they get - plus few of them have to pay for fuel so they don't care.

They get drunk on the income, and probably all Parties get donations from the fuel companies - all declared of course

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by T3rminator

Whats all the fuss about?

Locked in $1.65 Mobil 98 on the app a week ago. Yesterday, just so happened to be down Bayswater way, and saw another 7-11 station with $1.68 Mobil 98. So filled her up at $1.65, then locked in the $1.68 for another week. Just in time to cruise around metro melb on the weekend.

She's over $2/L in the North Western suburbs, might need to head out over east with the Thailux and a couple 205L drums

[Trevor 57]

We are still under $1.50 yesterday, only just under

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by Trevor 57

The Feds will never interfere, wanna know why? they get 10c in every $1, the higher the fuel price goes the more GST they get - plus few of them have to pay for fuel so they don't care.

They get drunk on the income, and probably all Parties get donations from the fuel companies - all declared of course

Never a truer word spoken, and imagine the party they all have when poor folk on low incomes drowning in debt, pay a tax of 90c in every dollar and call it a tobacco tax.
One thing about this Federal Government, is they never need to print any new dollars, they just screw the poor man on the street, there is no conscience in the Government, they and the states are just a big co-operative!

[T3rminator]

Originally Posted by Franco Cozzo

She's over $2/L in the North Western suburbs, might need to head out over east with the Thailux and a couple 205L drums

I think those prices are gone now. At the start of the weekend I saw one or two sleven servos still at 1.6x PULP but they are all now on par with everyone else.

Might be worth getting a couple of 20L SCA jerry cans and filling them up. Allowed max of 150L fill with the voucher, it'll pay for itself.

[Wretched]

Fueled up at BP last night for $2.04 a litre (SE Melb). Thankfully with COVID I generally only need half a tank these days for it to last 2 weeks.
I am not sure this will get any better.

[prktkljokr]

$30-40 for a tank full, I get 600ks to a tank which gets me to work and back for 3 weeks, big block 700cc turbo power I dont even check the price of fuel, what am I going to save, a few cents over 3 weeks

Thats the smart part of a Smart car, the rest is quite stupid

[pottery beige]

Originally Posted by prydey

Still not seeing where the scam is.

he ripped off the servo dude for crapper fuel at the cheaper price

[Vesper Martini]

Thing is the Servo dude isn't the one setting the price, unless its a privately run station which is pretty rare with inner suburbs.
So if somebody in corporate world runs a Promo on premium Diesel they Guy at the counter cant just decide to lower the regular product.

The Scam in all of this is selling a product called premium Diesel.

probably all comes from the same underground tank..

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by T3rminator

I think those prices are gone now. At the start of the weekend I saw one or two sleven servos still at 1.6x PULP but they are all now on par with everyone else.

Might be worth getting a couple of 20L SCA jerry cans and filling them up. Allowed max of 150L fill with the voucher, it'll pay for itself.

I mostly use diesel anyway, I think I've done less than 1000km in my unleaded cars combined this year

To put it into perspective, the diesel one has done 21,000km YTD and the unleaded ones about 750km between both.

[Franco Cozzo]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-...bane/100547210

ABC article about fuel prices

[prydey]

Originally Posted by Vesper Martini

The Scam in all of this is selling a product called premium Diesel.

..

Yup. Diesel is diesel. 'Premium' will just have a couple of added cleaning agents or something.

It's not like standard diesel is inferior. The transport industry runs on it so it needs to be reliable.

[Itsme]

Originally Posted by Trevor 57

The Feds will never interfere, wanna know why? they get 10c in every $1, the higher the fuel price goes the more GST they get - plus few of them have to pay for fuel so they don't care.

They get drunk on the income, and probably all Parties get donations from the fuel companies - all declared of course

Trev you are absolutely correct but I never said they will interfere with pricing with my comment; it was more tongue and cheek we are getting ripped off with the free trade market since our economy and currency was floated by Hawke & Keating plus with GST why would the governments complain.

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by prydey

Yup. Diesel is diesel. 'Premium' will just have a couple of added cleaning agents or something.

It's not like standard diesel is inferior. The transport industry runs on it so it needs to be reliable.

I knew a few truckies when I worked in S E Qld running 2nd grade diesel, it was the colour of tea, with milk,that was over 25 yrs ago, but they can still get it, if there is a demand there will be a supplier.
I never asked where it come from, but it was delivered in unmarked tankers, definitely a criminal enterprise, but Rocky is a truckie he may of seen it, it was half price of diesel at the bowser.

[slowsnake]

The Different Types of Diesel Fuel: #1,#2, and #4

Diesel fuels are broken up into 3 different classes: 1D(#1), 2D(#2) and 4D(#4). The difference between these classes depends on viscosity (the property of a fluid that causes a resistance to the fluid’s flow) and pour point (the temperature at which a fluid will flow).

#4 fuels tend to be used in low-speed engines. #2 fuels are used in warmer weather and are sometimes mixed with #1 fuel to create a competent winter fuel. #1 fuel is preferred for cold weather as it has a lower viscosity. It used to be standard to see the fuel # on the pump, but a lot of gas stations do not state the fuel number anymore.

Another important factor is the rating of Cetane in the diesel fuel. Cetane is similar to Octane for gasoline fuel and it indicates how easy the fuel will ignite and burn. Since Ultra low Sulfur diesel fuels became standard in the middle 2000s, the cetane has been reduced which makes the newer fuel less desirable for diesel enthusiasts. It is highly recommended to run a fuel additive to increase the overall Cetane number. Diesel fuel additives such as Fuel Bomb will also have lubricity additives which will help the modern diesel engine run better and achieve a higher fuel economy(MPG). One other feature of a diesel fuel additive is that it does not need much per tank. A standard bottle of diesel fuel additive usually treats 250-500 gallons.

Here is an article from Diesel Power Magazine on diesel fuel additives and why they are important.

Synthetic diesel comes from several sources such as wood, straw, corn and even garbage or discarded foods.

Biodiesel is an ecologically-friendly type of diesel. It is a cleaner-burning diesel made from natural, renewable sources such as vegetable oils and animal fats. Biodiesel is helping to reduce American dependence on foreign petroleum. It is also helping in the creation of green jobs and the improvement of our environment.