State's policy for pricing gas carries potential for confusion

Q. A gas station in Shrewsbury is charging 10 cents more per gallon for credit card users. The attorney general's office said it is illegal for this gas station to charge more per gallon for credit card users. I filed a complaint, and, so far, the station continues the practice. What is the law?

R.Wendy Miller, Shrewsbury

A. This has been a regular source of concern for consumers, and rightly so. Gas stations struggling with razor-thin margins - and not tied to the rules of major oil companies such as ExxonMobil and Shell - were looking for ways to cut costs. One option was to get customers to pay cash. Processing credit card transactions can cost a station several cents per gallon. That's typically the difference you'll see between the cash and credit prices.

You are right; state law does prohibit charging more for credit card users. But the law does not discourage charging two different prices, and it is quite simple for such a business to adhere to the law while still doing exactly what you saw. Offering a different price for those paying with credit cards and those paying with cash is called dual pricing, and the rules are simple.

All a station has to do is call the cash price a discount rather than call the credit card price a surcharge. It serves exactly the same purpose because, as you noted, you're paying more to use a credit card.

So, unless the station is foolishly advertising the credit price as a surcharge instead of billing the cash price as a discount, what it is doing is legal and quite common now at independent stations.

These stations do, however, have to make sure the pricing is clear to consumers. The idea is you shouldn't be surprised with either the fact that your credit card won't be accepted or that you're being charged a higher price for gas than you saw on the sign.

If you do see a station breaking the dual pricing laws by adding to the price of a gallon for credit card users or by having deceptive signs, you should file a complaint with the Division of Standards in the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, 617-727-3482, or e-mail standards.mail@state.ma.us.

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