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Why do I prefer to pump it myself?
Because gas station attendants frequently have a habit of trying to "round off" the purchase price by doing the click-click-click routine with the nozzle, thereby forcing additional gas into the tank after it has shut off for the first time.
I also hate it when they do this, which often ends up with overflowing gas dribbling down the side of the car and ruining the paint, as well.
And I also hate having to wait for the attendant to finally come around to remove the nozzle, long after it had finished. I prefer to pump my own gas any day (maybe except downpours ).
but, if i'm the one paying, why am i also the one providing the service?
it's like paying a restaurant to cook your own lunch.
Not really. If you go to a supermarket, you pay for the food and you also have to cook it. It's the same deal here: They give you the gas and you pump it. If you want it pumped, you have to pay a little bit more (well, they don't really give you the option of paying extra to have it pumped, but you get the picture).
Pumping gas is really easy. No need for people to freak out. People in 48 states manage to pump gas everyday!!
And like the OP pointed out if you get gas late at night you end up waiting for an attendant to pump gas into 6 other cars before he gets back to you so you have the privileged of paying him to wait a few minutes after the pump stops
I knew a guy in college who worked in a gas station on the NJTP and he would routinely overcharge people for gas. If you total was 48.55 he would say your total is 50.55 and pocket the extra $2.. works if someone is paying cash and if someone pointed out the disrepency... Oh sorry i got the amount wrong.. That kind of scam wont work if your pump your own gas
Ack !! As of August 1, 2012, NJ residents MAY have to start pumping their own gas !!
I remember when I was in Florida with a rent a car, and had no clue how to pump gas- I was on my way back to the airport, and on "E". Some kid, no more than 10 came and did it for me ... HAAAAAAA!
Hilarious, and humiliating. Can you believe it's a liability issue in NJ, they won't even allow you to stand outside of the car ...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With no end in sight for the rising gas prices, the State of New Jersey has finally decided to go the way of 48 other states and switch over to self serve gas pumps.
Governor Christie addressed the issue saying “We’re going to do whatever the hell we can to bring down these damn gas prices!”
Changing over to self serve will save us an estimated 5 cents per gallon of gas at the expense of 20,000 jobs.
Other states have made the switch in the past and cited cheaper gas as the reason. However studies of those states showed that the price of gas dropped by about 5 cents/gallon for the first 6 months to a year but then went back up as the oil companies stopped passing in the savings to their customers and simply added it to their profits. In the end, the price of gas went back to where it would have been otherwise and the jobs were lost for nothing.
On top of that, New Jersey gasoline prices tend to be among the lowest in the country on a regular basis.
The changeover is expected to go into effect on August 1st, 2012 to allow the stations to make the necessary changes.
After that date, Oregon will be the last state standing with full serve gas stations.
I don't WANT to pump my own gas. I've done it, of course, because I've driven outside of NJ, but I like having someone come and do that just as I would rather go to a restaurant where they bring me food instead of me having to get up and get it.
Bah humbug.
EDIT: HAHAHA, just saw that it was April Fool's. Thank God.
Pumping gas is really easy. No need for people to freak out. People in 48 states manage to pump gas everyday!!
And like the OP pointed out if you get gas late at night you end up waiting for an attendant to pump gas into 6 other cars before he gets back to you so you have the privileged of paying him to wait a few minutes after the pump stops
I knew a guy in college who worked in a gas station on the NJTP and he would routinely overcharge people for gas. If you total was 48.55 he would say your total is 50.55 and pocket the extra $2.. works if someone is paying cash and if someone pointed out the disrepency... Oh sorry i got the amount wrong.. That kind of scam wont work if your pump your own gas
Well, what idiot doesn't LOOK at the pump to see what the price was?
I know it's an April Fool's joke, but the one thing I don't understand is the justification of "preserving jobs". I can count on one hand the number of stations that actually employee local kids to pump the gas. In general these are the places that have a mechanic shop as well and the owner has his kids and their friends pump the gas while helping out around the shop.
The vast, vast majority of stations are owner operated by immigrants. The guy who owns the station and maybe some of his immediate family that also have a share in the business are the ones working there. They do it precisely so they don't have to pay employees. These guys are there day in and day out working tons of hours so they can keep what slim profit margins they have.
A switch to self-serve isn't going to eliminate that many jobs, but I also don't think it's going to result in a reduction of prices. Someone still needs to be at the station, that guy just won't have to pump the gas anymore.
The one exception to this is going to be places like the large "super" Wawa stations that have multiple pumps and generally have 3 or 4+ people working them. There will still need to be an attendant, but they won't need all those people. Of course, something like a Wawa may stay full-service anyway just for the added convenience and the fact that it drives a lot of traffic into the store while people are having their gas pumped.
So, it won't eliminate many jobs, but it won't save any money either.
paying more for using a credit card chaps my hide more than full/self serve ever will.
Well, given that the stations are paying a fee to the credit card company, they either have to raise the price for credit card use, or build the fee into the cost per gallon that everyone pays- you're going to pay it either way.
Well, given that the stations are paying a fee to the credit card company, they either have to raise the price for credit card use, or build the fee into the cost per gallon that everyone pays- you're going to pay it either way.
when they instituted this policy, they raised the price for credit cards, they didn't lower it for cash. it's a scam - they took advantage of a situation (rising gas prices) to pad their bottom line.
i only patronize places that charge the same amount for both.
I know it's an April Fool's joke, but the one thing I don't understand is the justification of "preserving jobs". I can count on one hand the number of stations that actually employee local kids to pump the gas. In general these are the places that have a mechanic shop as well and the owner has his kids and their friends pump the gas while helping out around the shop.
The vast, vast majority of stations are owner operated by immigrants. The guy who owns the station and maybe some of his immediate family that also have a share in the business are the ones working there. They do it precisely so they don't have to pay employees. These guys are there day in and day out working tons of hours so they can keep what slim profit margins they have.
A switch to self-serve isn't going to eliminate that many jobs, but I also don't think it's going to result in a reduction of prices. Someone still needs to be at the station, that guy just won't have to pump the gas anymore.
The one exception to this is going to be places like the large "super" Wawa stations that have multiple pumps and generally have 3 or 4+ people working them. There will still need to be an attendant, but they won't need all those people. Of course, something like a Wawa may stay full-service anyway just for the added convenience and the fact that it drives a lot of traffic into the store while people are having their gas pumped.
So, it won't eliminate many jobs, but it won't save any money either.
Maybe it depends on the area, but of the 4 stations currently operating in OC, all but one are locally owned and operated and all have Americans as employees. Only one has mechanics, but the mechanics are separate and don't pump gas. Some of the employees are kids but most seem to be older men for whom employment opportunities are limited, especially in this area.
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