Disclosing Gasoline Price Differences for Cash and Credit Card Purchases

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May 25, 2007 -- NEWARK – New Jersey officials today reminded motorists that gasoline retailers may be charging two different prices per gallon of gasoline, depending on whether payment is made by cash or credit card.

Signs displaying the per-gallon cost for both cash and credit card purchases are required on each pump when there is a price differential. The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs has contacted the New Jersey Gasoline Retailers Association to insist that roadside signs also clearly display both the cash and credit prices for gasoline.

"Gas station operators who offer a cash discount must clearly display both prices to the motorist on all advertisements, including road signs. With the price of gasoline at current levels, consumers need to know whether the posted price is for cash purchases only and, if higher, the price for a credit card purchase," said Acting Consumer Affairs Director Stephen B. Nolan.

Nolan added that the Gasoline Retailers Association understands the Division’s concern and has agreed to contact its members about revising roadside signs.

The State Office of Weights and Measures, which regulates the retail sale of gasoline in New Jersey, is a unit within the Division of Consumer Affairs.

Source: New Jersey Attorney General