State stops gas discounts at Merrill service station

Owner told he violated Wisconsin's Unfair Sales Act

By Carrie Hutton
Wausau Daily Herald
chutton@wdhprint.com

MERRILL -- With gasoline prices rising, a Merrill service station made an attractive offer: Save 3 cents on each gallon and support local youth sports at the same time.

Senior citizens also paid less for gas, saving 2 cents a gallon.

That was until the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection heard about the offers and informed Center City BP owner Raj Bhandari his discounts were too good to be legal.

Bhandari said he was unaware the offers -- a card supporting the Merrill Youth Hockey Association and a senior discount -- violated Wisconsin's Unfair Sales Act, which requires retailers to sell gasoline for about 9.2 percent above the wholesale price.

The law had been explained to retailers in a December 2003 letter. Bhandari has owned the Merrill store since May 2006.

He said he received a letter in late April from a state auditor saying the cash discounts he offered put his fuel prices too far below the state's minimum markup.

"In our case, it's cutting the state margin," Bhandari said.

He said he informed his customers the discounts had ended but worries they think he halted the offers to make more money. Bhandari said he could be sued by the state if he continued the discounts. A state penalty would be assessed for each gallon discounted, with the amount decided by a judge.

Customer Dale Van Camp of Merrill said he bought the $50 card to support the hockey program and, in exchange, was saving what would have been about $100 a year.

Van Camp has contacted state Rep. Don Friske, R-Merrill, to ask him to consider a change in the law that would allow locally owned gas stations to offer discounts when it benefits schools.

Center City clerk Annette Stover said store employees are doing their best to explain the change to the estimated 10 percent of customers who were using the discounts.

Gas discounts at local grocery stores involved in the Pump Perks program still are allowed because the discount is funded by food vendors.

David Bonnell Jr., store manager at County Market in Merrill, said the store's gasoline sales have spiked since it started the Pump Perks program nearly two years ago.

"Anything that saves money is popular," he said.