State inspects Monroe County Speedway station for water in gasoline. What we know
A state inspector came to Bloomington this week to investigate a complaint about bad gasoline being dispensed at the Speedway on West Third Street. Some of the station’s pumps were shut down Thursday.
A Monroe County official said the state received a complaint about the station dispensing gasoline with water in it. When the inspector arrived, the station already was addressing the problem, said Scott Sowder, inspector with the Monroe County Department of Weights and Measures.
On social media, some people posted that they had problems with their vehicles after getting gas at the station on Christmas Day. One said they incurred costs related to towing after their vehicle broke down, with another saying they had incurred hundreds of dollars in repair bills. Those reports could not be verified. Several of the people who posted to social media did not reply to messages.
7-Eleven, which owns Speedway stations, did not respond to an email message. Someone who answered the phone at the local station and identified himself as a manager said he could not answer any questions.
Customers were getting some gasoline at the station Thursday morning but signs on pumps showed the station was not selling 87 or 89 grade unleaded gasoline.
Details scant due to state involvement
Sowder said he could not provide details on the inspection because it was handled by a state inspector. That happens sometimes when the local inspector is not available.
The state’s Weights and Measures Program is part of the Indiana State Department of Health. The program did not return a phone message Wednesday. A woman who answered the phone Thursday morning said the program was working on a response.
No response had been received by Thursday afternoon, so the number of affected customers and the cause of the water in the tank were not immediately available, though government websites indicate that compromised underground storage tanks are a primary cause of water infiltration.
Most stations have a monitoring system that informs them of the presence of water in gasoline, Sowder said, and the Bloomington Speedway station had gotten complaints and was addressing the problem.
“If corrective actions have already been taken by the business, it can be difficult to ascertain the extent or severity of the initial issue," Sowder said. “However, it is always reassuring to Weights and Measures to see that a business is listening to their customers and addressing the issue without our intervention.”
He said when he gets a complaint about bad fuel, he may:
check the tank monitoring system for the presence of contaminants,
look for evidence of contaminants in or around the business,
probe the storage tank with a water detecting paste or probe to see whether the tank contains water above allowable limits, and
Collect a sample from the bottom of the storage tank.
Monroe County inspector can issue fines for violations
Generally, when the department finds a problem such as water being in the gasoline, it requires the vendor to stop selling the product, Sowder said. Before sales can continue, the vendor must complete a checklist and an inspector will conduct a follow-up inspection.
Monroe County law allows the issuing of fines of $50 per day per violation, Sowder said.
The county usually issues only two or three fines per year.
Sowder, who is the sole inspector in Monroe County, checks more than 1,000 scales annually, ranging from gas stations to grocery stores to those used to weigh wrestlers before a tournament. Some grocery stores have dozens of scales, he said.
“Problems do occur between our annual inspections,” Sowder said. “Customers are our eyes and ears in the field between inspections. If you find an issue, do not hesitate to call and report it.”
The department investigates complaints ranging from method of sale to dispenser accuracy and mechanical issues.
You can reach Sowder at 812-349-2566.
He said the frequency of complaints he gets varies from about one a month to about 10 per month. Complaints rise with the cost of gasoline. Typically, he said, inspections show about 25% of the complaints to be legitimate.
Customers who pumped contaminated gasoline or incurred other damages should contact the station, Sowder said, as his department merely determines whether a problem exists and, if so, to stop any further sales. The department does not get involved with customer reimbursements or damages.
With bad fuel, what recourse do customers have?
According to findlaw.com, customers may have a negligence case against a station that dispenses bad gasoline.
“You can recover compensation for damage to your vehicle and any rental car that you may have needed while it was under repair,” according to the website. “If the repairs are small and no one was hurt, you may be able to handle the case on your own in small claims court.”
Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington Speedway station inspected after complaints of water in gas
