A Sunday Gleaner-Univer-sity of the West Indies (UWI) investigative team has found that gas pumps surveyed recently were delivering less gas than motorists actually paid for.

However, the good news for the motoring public is that the difference between the litres paid for and the litres actually received were slight in all cases. Still, the cumulative value could translate into higher returns for gas retailers over time, as well as significant losses for high-volume users of petrol.

The Sunday Gleaner, in tandem with representatives of the Department of Chemistry at the UWI, purchased, weighed and measured petrol bought at 10 randomly selected Corporate Area gas stations last week. The volume tests showed that the quantity of litres received by a purchaser was slightly less than the quantity shown on the gas pump.

Furthermore, closer examination of the quoted prices per litre and the actual litres received revealed that at least one gas pump displayed the incorrect number of litres delivered. The amount of gas shown as delivered at the price quoted was erroneous.

At this particular gas station, the display board and the pump indicated that unleaded 90 gasolene cost $67.82. The Sunday Gleaner purchased $500 worth of the petrol. At that price, our investigative team should have received 7.372 litres of gas. However, the pump said it delivered 7.036, which was 336 millilitres less than it should have been. When the chemists from the UWI conducted their volume test, the actual litres received was 7.280!

Devon Perry, inspector of weights and measures at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ), said the stipulated allowable tolerance or room for error is plus or minus 0.3 per cent. This means that the BSJ would flag a pump that gives more than or less than 0.3 per cent of the amount of petrol that should be delivered for a particular purchase.

Calculating amounts

The number of litres to be delivered by a pump is calculated by dividing the amount of gas being purchased by the per-litre figure advertised by the service station. Using the regulatory agency's margin of error, the pump in question should be barred from serving the public because the amount delivered was a millilitre shy of being three times less than the allowed minimum.

While stating that The Sunday Gleaner-UWI's volume tests might be flawed, Perry said a healthy pump would not display the incorrect litres.

"That means it is defective. Once the computation is not correct, it is defective and must come out of commission until it is fixed and re-verified by the officers of the Bureau of Standards," he said.

President of the Jamaica Gasolene Retailers' Association (JGRA), Trevor Barnes, while questioning how The Sunday Gleaner data were gathered, said if stations were overcharging then the pump should be closed down.

"I know that the service stations islandwide are tested regularly by the Bureau of Standards and if there is any short delivery, then that pump is closed immediately," Barnes said.

No highway robbery

The lead UWI chemist, who conducted the volume tests, agreed that while the results did not scream highway robbery, motorists were not getting all that they paid for.

"The losses are negligible," said the chemist - who requested anonymity - while noting that some evaporation would have occurred during testing.

This might not be a consolation for many motorists who are still fuming over the Government's decision to increase the special-consumption tax on fuel by $8.75. The gas tax took effect last Monday.

Expired bsj stickers

Most of the gas pumps used in the study had the Bureau of Standards Jamaica's approval sticker affixed to them. However, our investigative team noticed that the approvals had expired two months ago.

Perry pointed out that it was the bureau's responsibility to ensure that defective pumps did not serve the public. If a pump is found wanting, a 'rejected' sticker is placed on it.

Pumps have been rejected in the past, Perry said. Nevertheless, he was unable to pinpoint the last time the BSJ turned down a pump. "They are mechanical devices and they become defective based on usage," he explained. Pump approvals from the bureau last for six months.

tyrone.reid@gleanerjm.com

1) Service Station A

Fuel type purchased: 87
Amount per litre: $69.70
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$69.70): 7.175
Litres quoted on pump: 7.175
Litres received: 7.110

2) Service Station B

Fuel type purchased: 90
Amount per litre: $67.82
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$67.82): 7.372
Litres quoted on pump: 7.036
Litres received: 7.280

3) Service Station C

Fuel type purchased: E-10
Amount per litre: $62.24
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$62.24): 8.033
Litres quoted on pump: 8.034
Litres received: 8

4) Service Station D

Fuel type purchased: 90
Amount per litre: $67.95
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$67.95): 7.358
Litres quoted on pump: 7.359
Litres received: 7.290

5) Service Station E

Fuel type purchased: 90
Amount per litre: $72.80
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$72.80): 6.868
Litres quoted on pump: 6.869
Litres received: 6.8

6) Service Station F

Fuel type purchased: Diesel
Amount per litre: $64.83
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$64.83): 7.712
Litres quoted on pump: 7.713
Litres received: 7.690

7) Service Station G

Fuel type purchased: Diesel
Amount per litre: $66.20
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$66.20): 7.553
Litres quoted on pump: 7.553
Litres received: 7.54

8) Service Station H

Fuel type purchased: 87
Amount per litre: $65.70
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$65.70): 7.610
Litres quoted on pump: 7.611
Litres received: 7.42

9) Service Station I

Fuel type purchased: 90
Amount per litre: $74.45
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$74.45): 6.716
Litres quoted on pump: 6.717
Litres received: 6.60

10) Service Station J

Fuel type purchased: 90
Amount per litre: $73.83
Amount purchased: $500
Litres expected: ($500/$73.83): 6.772
Litres quoted on pump: 6.773
Litres received: 6.69

*The purchases were made on Thursday April 30, 2009.