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Randall Jeppesen and Gene Kennedy reportingGas station owners say the price at the pump is so high they're actually losing money when people pay with a credit card. It's the small businessman who has to pay for each credit card transaction, and some are now taking action.
The owner of an Orem gas station says he's willing to give a discount to anyone willing to pay cash. If so, it's $3.95 a gallon.
But many don't see that little word "cash" on the sign. When they get to the pump, they're paying 5 cents a gallon more, and they're not too happy.
"You think you start off with $3.95 a gallon, you get here and it's $4," customer Henry Lucke said.
Gas station owner Mike Peterson said, "It's as hard a time right now as I've ever seen in the 30 years I've been doing this."
Utah Petroleum Association President Lee Peacock said, "When you add the cost of credit on to there, sometimes they (gas station owners) don't make any money at all, or even could lose money."
Peterson says he pays 3 percent for every credit card transaction. "Three percent on a $4 a gallon charge is 12 cents a gallon, and, unfortunately, we don't make that kind of money," he said.
Some customers do understand. "Absolutely. They're not making any money here," Dee Burgess said.
But even the understanding customers, like Burgess, didn't understand it's cheaper to pay with cash versus a credit card. "Really?" she asked. "That is news to me."
"It's frustrating because, you know, I go to where the cheapest one is. I see the cheapest sign, that's where I go. Then you get there and it's like I got screwed," customer Renee Madsen said.
On the big sign, some prices say "cash" next to them. There is also fine print on the pumps talking about the discount, but most just miss it.
So, Peterson has ordered new signs with credit and cash prices on them. "You end up posting every single price for every single product," he said.
In the age of $4 a gallon gas, it's come to this. But one small businessman says it's his only option. The 7-Eleven gas station across the street is simply charging more per gallon with no mention of a cash discount.
Some station owners around the country are saying credit cards are no longer welcome at all.
There are also other gas stations doing these kinds of programs, but most customers told us the convenience of a credit card outweighs the savings.
E-mail: rjeppesen@ksl.com
E-mail: gkennedy@ksl.com
