Gas station hiked prices after Hurricane Beryl, Texas officials say. Now it owes
In the aftermath of a devastating hurricane, one Texas gas station hiked gas prices in an attempt to make a bigger profit, Texas prosecutors said.
Now, the Houston-area gas station has agreed to pay a $50,000 fine since they couldn’t justify the 40% price hike during Hurricane Beryl in July, Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee said in an Oct. 8 news release.
The Super Stop gas station in Baytown was sued in August by the county over the “excessive price hikes,” prosecutors said. The gas station sells Shell fuel.
The gas station’s attorney did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment on Oct. 9.
According to the lawsuit, premium gas cost $3.80 per gallon at the Shell gas station, located at 5003 N. Main Street, when Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas on July 8.
The next day, premium gas was $5.49 per gallon, the lawsuit said, a 44% markup.
The manager told investigators that the price increase was due to the station being low on premium gas, the lawsuit said. The manager said the hike was an effort to deter people from purchasing the gas, according to the complaint.
However, the gas station did not provide documentation, prosecutors said.
Officials said the gas station was price gouging an essential item during a natural disaster.
“If you exploit the community during a disaster, the consequences will far outweigh any short-term profits,” prosecutors said in the news release.
Another gas station in Bellaire was sued in August over an alleged unjustified price hike after Hurricane Beryl, McClatchy News reported. The station is accused of marking up prices as high as 41% in the days after the hurricane hit the state, according to the lawsuit.
“If you try to exploit a natural disaster to mark up your profits on the backs of Harris County residents, we will find out,” Menefee said in the news release. “And it’s going to cost you.”
Baytown is about a 25-mile drive southeast from Houston. Bellaire is about an 8-mile drive southwest from Houston.
This story was originally published October 9, 2024 at 12:40 PM with the headline "Gas station hiked prices after Hurricane Beryl, Texas officials say. Now it owes."
