Barton Silverman/The New York Times Drivers waited for gas on Long Island after Hurricane Sandy. (The station shown is not one of those found to have gouged prices.)Twenty-five gas stations in New York State agreed to pay a total of $167,850 in fines for price-gouging in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced on Thursday.
The stations included a Lukoil on Pelham Parkway in the Bronx that raised its price by $1.10 per gallon after the storm, from $4.29 to $5.39, even as the wholesale price the station paid fell by one cent, the attorney general’s office said.
Another station that paid a fine, a Mobil on Crescent Street in Long Island City, Queens, raised its price by $1.03 per gallon after the storm, from $3.86 to $4.89, while the wholesale price fell by two cents.
“As New Yorkers were sitting in lines waiting for hours to buy critical supplies of gasoline, some shady business owners were trying to make a fast buck at their expense,” Mr. Schneiderman said in a statement. “Today, we are sending a powerful message that ripping off New Yorkers during a time of crisis is against the law and we will do everything in our power to hold them accountable.”
The attorney general’s office received hundreds of complaints of price-gouging after the storm. Mr. Schneiderman said that investigations were still pending against dozens of other stations.
No comments:
Post a Comment