Gas Stations Caught Ripping Off Customers

Gas stations failed to lower prices even after oil prices fell, the state-run Korea National Oil Corp. said yesterday.

Oil companies sold fuel to gas stations for an estimated average of 1,764.44 won per liter in the fourth week of June, or 15.9 won lower than that in the first week.

But gas stations nationwide sold gas for 1,907.08 won a liter in the fourth week, or down from 1,906.83 won of the first week. On the contrary, they had been quick to raise prices when wholesale prices rose.

For example, when the average wholesale price went up from 1,779.71 won in the first week of July to 1,817.33 won in the second, gas stations increased the retail price from 1,907.30 to 1,922.30 won over the same period.

Gas stations are found to have manipulated the time gap in tallying statistics. The accurate wholesale price is determined at the end of each month.

A representative of the Korea Oil Station Association said, “The weekly average wholesale price is tallied based on the price oil companies sell to the stations run directly by them.”

“Most gas stations do not know the real price until the end of the month. So it’s hard to reflect market fluctuations immediately. Some gas stations seem to have rigged their prices to make up for the losses they sustained in April and May.”

cha@donga.com