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A Florida consumer lodged a class action Friday claiming she and others paid unexpectedly higher prices when they purchased gas at Shell stations using their debit card.
Lead plaintiff, Rebekah Kurimski, seeks to represent other Florida consumers that she says were duped into purchasing gas at Shells stations by so-called “cash” pricing. Kurimski says that Shell gas stations bait-and-switch consumers with an advertised “cash” price that is significantly less than “credit” prices.
She says the gas station’s shell game misled her and other consumers into thinking that they would receive the lower cash price if they used their debit cards. Instead, she and other Floridians were hit with the credit price.
Kurimsky claims that she purchased gas at a Shell station in February. She says she decided to make her purchase at Shell because of the cash price advertised at the station. She claims that, based on Shell’s marketing, she reasonably thought she would get the cash price if she used her debit card. Instead, she says she was surprised when she was charged the credit price.
Kurimsky alleges that she and other consumers would not have purchased gas at Shell but for the deceptively advertised cash prices.
“To drive sales and increase their own revenue, Defendant has engaged in a deceptive pricing scheme which misleads consumers into believing they will be charged a lower price for gasoline purchases made with debit cards, when in reality consumers are charged a higher ‘credit’ price for these transactions,” alleges the lawsuit.
Other class actions have been filed over deceptive cash pricing schemes at gas stations, including a class action against Arco that resulted in a $409 million verdict and, ultimately, a settlement that saw Class Members getting up to $200 each.
The class action contends that consumers reasonably expect debit cards to be treated like cash by retailers like Shell, pointing out several key differences between the forms of payment.
The biggest difference, says the lawsuit is that for consumers who use credit cards, “the cardholder receives a bill at the end of the month and may pay off the entire balance, or they may make a smaller payment and accrue interest on the remaining balance.”
“In stark contrast,” notes the class action, “a debit card payment results in an immediate deduction of cash from the cardholder’s checking account.” Indeed, retailers, including Shell, acknowledge that difference by placing an “authorization hold” on debit card transactions.
The plaintiff seeks to represent other Florida consumers who paid the credit price for gas purchases at a Shell station when they used their debit cards. In addition to damages, the class action wants a court order stopping the allegedly deceptive pricing scheme.
Have you unexpectedly paid the credit price to use your debit card at Shell gas station? We want to hear from you! Tell us what happened in the comment section below!
The lead plaintiff is represented by Scott C. Harris and Erin J. Ruben of Whitfield Bryson LLP and Robert C. Gindel Jr. of Robert C. Gindel Jr. PA.
The Shell Debit Card Gas Price Class Action Lawsuit is Kurimski v. Shell Oil Company, Case No. 9:21-cv-80727 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
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316 thoughts onShell Playing Game With Debit Card Gas Prices, Says Class Action
add me and my daughter
Add me please
I always get my gas at shell gas. I always use my debit please include me
BEEN USING THEIR 2ND GRADE FUEL ON ALL MY 4 FOREIGN CARS. (Mercedes, BMW & Volvo) for last couple of decades.
Always swiped my card at the pump for payment so didn’t notice the fraud which was going on. Include me in this lawsuit.
BEING AN EX SHELL GAS STATION OWNER I’M STILL VERY FAITHFUL TO THIS COMPANY. BEING PUMPING A1 GRADE GAS IN ALL MY VEHICLES FOR LAST 15 PLUS YEARS.
PLEASE INCLUDE ME.
Please add
Always felt something was wrong but never could put my hand on it
Add me
Please and me.
I have suspected that something was wrong as I have never been able to get answers on this. Please ad me
They also charged the credit price when using a gift card!
There is a particular Shell gas station I patronize in Washington, D.C. NE. It’s location is around Minnesota Ave. NE, a dew blocks from Benning Road NE. This station is notorious for the bait and switch, cash versus debit/ card, payment scheme.
For years, until 2021, I had always unknowingly, paid the credit rate. This was because I was always under the impression that the stated price for Regular Unleaded was just that, the actual price.
Nowhere near the billboard-like signage posting the fuel prices is it stated the Regular Unleaded price, is “only available” if a customer uses Cash versus a debit/credit card as tender. Same goes for the several pumps.
I even noticed several times in 2020 that I did not receive the stated rate after using a debit/credit card…and complained to the station clerk. This is when I became aware of their policy of the posted rate for Regular Unleaded only applies should your form of tender he Cash. So needless to say, my complaints fell on uncompromising ears.
In 2021, I have enjoyed both the discounted rate and higher rate, only when I do not have the Cash on me and really need the gas. Nevertheless; I still believe it unfair and could imagine the many thousands of unsuspecting people who have fallen prey to this kind of false and misleading advertising. Something has to be said about the levels of deception merchants will go through in order to save a few bucks.
This same scenario is played out in many local stores in D.C. Admittedly; from my experiences, the perpetrators have been smaller mom and pop type stores. However; it seems to me that merchants agree with Visa, Mastercard, or any other Bank or POS Solutions providers like Clover and Square, to have the privilege accepting those requisite digital forms of payment. One important benefit is by doing so, would potentially help drive more customers to their stores, and this society is becoming more and more cashless.
Personally; I do not carry a lot of Cash and mostly opt to use my debit/credit cards (I’ve even be ome more sophisticated in 2021 by using my digital wallet/cell phone for payment). So when I go into a store and attempt to make a purchase; present my debit/credit card as tender; only to be told advised by the clerk that my total receipts do not add up to $10.00 so my form of payment can’t be accepted and that in order to utilize my form of tender, my total purchase must be at least $10 or more. If not, I can only pay by Cash…is quite unsettling and demeaning at same time. And to think of these practices only being carried out in areas or neighborhoods overwhelmingly inhabited by Black and other Minority citizens. So there definitely needs to be investigation and legal complaints perfected to abolish these racial and ethnically disparate actions.