Motorists buy fuel at old prices

V Fenech

Dec 25th 2008, 19:48

Hehhh, don't you know that Gonzi's strong pair of hands only applies for more burden onto the consumers and the taxpayers?

jane Roner

Dec 25th 2008, 09:09

The GRTU always seems to put its nose in where it does not matter, but when it does mattar, one never seems to find it. The correspondents are very right, petrol station owners put up their price the very next day an increase was announced and did not wait for their stockpile to end.

I seriously belive that Petrol stations, like public transport should be liberalised and away with the days when petrol stations are being negotiated for astronomic sums of money. Liberalisation must also happen in fuel supplies and allow companies like shell and BP to regulate the real price of fuel.

We maltese continue to be manipulated by monopolies and cartels.

George Camilleri

Dec 24th 2008, 09:19

Where were the fuel pump owners these last few years when the fuel cost was always going up? Did they complain to the authorities that they still has fuel bought at cheaper prices prices stocked?

lgalea

Dec 24th 2008, 08:52

R Vella
Your figures do not tally
Assuming that you took the same amount of fuel, if previously it had cost you €60 and now it cost you €40 that means a 33% reduction which is way out from that announced by the government.

So either you did not take as much fuel as you usually take, the pump attendant made a mistake, the pump had not been correctly adjusted in which case the owner is making a loss, or you are just pulling our legs.

paul barbara

Dec 24th 2008, 08:38

just another case of your petroleum industry has no idea of what it is doing, in fairness if you had 100000 litres of fuel in the ground would anyone sell it cheaper than they paid for it.
as soon as you remove the absolute criminal waste of money that enemalta petroleum division costs the motorist for a job it can not undertake nor wants to undertake everyone will be better off. may be one day you will cut the petrol stations down to the real need of the island of about 25 and have real stations that offer the consumer exactly what they want at any time that they want it and with less stations will come less pollution and greater service, words that will not be correct to the establishment in malta

J Micallef

Dec 24th 2008, 08:36

This is soooooo different form when the price goes up.

Some time ago, when the price increased, I was at a pump station in Marsa and he had a whole confusion to charge people at the new high prices...he had even updated the prices wrongly and had to give us a refund, the bugger! He never saw me again at his station.

Joe M. Anastasi

Dec 23rd 2008, 21:50

I don't know why we're all making such a fuss. Perhaps it's because we're all so surprised that Government has actually lowered the price of anything instead of increasing it.

But hang on a minute. The price of oil, Internationally, dropped by more than 50% in the last year, yet our gracious government has reduced our price by 20%, and we get all excited.

The price of oil dropped again yesterday. Do we get another discount?

Joe Scerri

Dec 23rd 2008, 20:38

Did anyone bother confirming the price before filling?
Its displayed on the pumps anyway.
I checked the price before filling on Monday ,otherwise I would gone elsewhere and reported the particular station. Welcome home Mickey !! :)

R Vella

Dec 23rd 2008, 18:48

I was lucky then yesterday to be charged a good price....I went to my usual petrol station in Sta Venera & I usually fill up my tank to the full which cost is around 60 euros...yesterday the cost came to 40 euros...i told the pump attendant that she must have done a mistake, but insisted that prices were reduced....So...not all pump owners did not co operate ...some know that this measure will help boost the economy...

M Agius

Dec 23rd 2008, 14:03

I actually went back to the station to complain when I realised that I had been overcharged. The explanation was that they cannot change prices before the Enemalta people do it for them as the pumps are sealed. This article shows me what a blatant lie this was and one petrol station has permanently lost a customer. Moreover there was a time when I was actually charged the new higher price on the eve of the day prices had to go up. No waiting for Enemalta then, the pumps magically unsealed themselves. And has anyone noticed that when pumps are in self service mode the fuel pump stops at 19.99 euros after taking your 20?

philip pace

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:57

Without any shadow of a doubt, this is a first class KAWLATA MALTIJA.
I would have expected that during the weekend all petrol station would have had their stocks checked, BUT ON A MONDAY MORNING!
It is no use to point an accusing finger as we all know who the culprits are by now.
How can a Government and all concerned infuse and instill trust, confidence and respect when the citizen is treated with such continous bungling?
Where was the consumers association?
Why weren;t those petrol stations owners who FAILED TO ATTEND the meeting on Sunday, notified about the slashing of prices when we live in a world controlled by telephones, mobile phones, internet and lastly by cars?
Mr.Carlo Cini was not all convincing by his lame excuse.
Is this a moment that who ever is in charge refuses to take full responsibilty?
Another sad chapter in the history of this Banana Republic.

michael fenech

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:49

Petrol in Toronto this morning is at 40 uero cents. So Minister Gatt is not being as generous as he want us to believe.

Joe Vella

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:40

@ M Borg

"You have to fill in with what is provided!!!!"

Not quite true. If my tank was on empty, I personally would put enough to take me to the next Petrol Station.

alex coppola

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:18

@ Larry Lurex
I agree with you 100%. When prices go up for almost anything they do so the next day, but when and if prices go down (which is a rarity here in Malta) they do so at a later stage.
Is this what we call fairness? Where is the so called Consumers Association?

lgalea

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:17

The customer always gets it.

Darryl-Ferdinand Szigeti

Dec 23rd 2008, 12:16

it looks that the old trick still works - announce news but change the focus so people can vent their anger on a complete side issue. The real question is how come the fuel prices -which are largely tax related- were so high for so long (the drop in oil prices started long ago ) and why are they so high even now. During an economic downturn the taxes should be lowered so people can have more spending power in the private sector (which generates multiples better the the government spending). On our recent trip to an other EU country we tanked for 0.82 Euro per liter of unleaded. So, when will our next price decrease coming-is the real issue.

Rapheal Spiteri

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:52

Now I hope that the price of bread, bakeries and public transport will also go down. It is always the same story over here when something goes up in price the private sector quickly hike up prices but when something goes down in price they do not reduce their prices. i worked with the private sector for 9 years and when I made 100 pounds profit nothing was said but when I lose 1 pound my employer used to make a lot of fuss.

M Borg

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:50

@ C Buttigieg.

Many people had to fill their tanks on Monday morning, since many companies have such a strategy: to fill tanks on Monday mornings! An what if someone is going to travel between Malta and Gozo or vice versa, and the petrol station which is contracted with the company has not yet lowered the price? You have to fill in with what is provided!!!!

C Buttigieg

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:34

When I went to fill my car yesterday morning the first thing I checked was the price which is clearly shown on all the pumps in every station. My question is why did people fill up if it was showing the old high price. Maybe it is just because we crave something to moan about? If someone takes the money he's a thief. If you give them the money you're a donor.

Emanuel Farrugia

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:26

But surely the Government knew this situation would develop once fuel prices were either increased or reduced. The awkward part is that when it comes to petrol and diesel, consumers do not receive a VAT or other receipt.

So how can they prove that they purchased petrol or diesel at the old price, so that when petrol stations are refunded, they can claim the difference in price from the petrol station ?

m.psaila

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:22

I went to the gas station yest and got nearly a litre and a half extra with 10 euros....it ' s been a while since i lef the gas station in a good mood , i then went to do some christmas shopping in a better mood :-) ... pity that not all motorists enjoyed the new slashed prices yest ...

m. lavelle

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:19

Wow, I just realised that petrol actually cost more per litre in Malta than the UK. This must be a first?

ALBERT RAUSI

Dec 23rd 2008, 11:03

ONLY IN MALTA ?

P Debono

Dec 23rd 2008, 10:41

Great... Just as FOR A CHANGE we're being charged normal prices for petrol just like other normal countries, these people come out and break the law like this.

This really is a Mickey Mouse country after all.

Larry Lurex

Dec 23rd 2008, 10:30

But when prices go up they do put their prices up immediately and not wait until their old stock to run out!!! Is fairness anywhere to be found?!