ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News Investigates continues to hear from consumers who said they got contaminated gas at Georgia Costco locations.
Channel 2′s Consumer Investigator Justin Gray was in Brookhaven on Monday, where he continues to hear from frustrated drivers after he first reported on the issue last week.
The first thing people need to do during these situations is immediately call Georgia Fuel and Measures to come out and test the pump.
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Michelle Robinovitz shared her story last week about bad gas she believes came from a Costco gas station in Sandy Springs, causing $700 worth of damage to her car.
Robinovitz’s mechanic even provided video evidence of the contaminated gasoline, but Costco’s CEO claimed the damage to her car wasn’t the store’s fault.
Rachel Bernstein reached out to Channel 2 Action News after watching Robinovitz’s story. Bernstein’s gas came from the Brookhaven location. Both women ended up with $700 mechanic bills to flush out the bad gas.
“I thought I was watching about myself. It was an almost identical situation that I went through,” Bernstein said. “When I brought (my car) in, they informed me that they had suspected bad gas. And once they tested it, it was confirmed.”
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Bernstein emailed Costco’s CEO Ron Vachris directly and got a response. Vachris wrote:
“We have inspected our gas station and shown no signs of water in our gas tanks. I am not sure who informed you that your vehicle’s problems are from Costco gasoline. We are confident that is not the case.”
Oscar Guevara said he got bad gas at a Georgia Costco while he was driving through on a business trip.
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“They did send me a check for my membership, " Guevara said.” So I do respect that. But obviously, the $60 or $55 is not the same as $1,400, right?”
Costco has since reached back out to Robinovitz and offered to pay for her repair bill. Another Costco representative reached out to Bernstein and said the company will help cover her bill.
If you do suspect bad gas, immediately report it to Georgia’s Fuel and Measures Department, which can come out and test and shut down pumps.
Costco has still not responded to Gray’s calls or emails.
Channel 2 Consumer Advisor Clark Howard said you can be successful taking gas stations that sell you bad gas to court.
“What you’re left with is a good remedy,” Howard said. “You sued them in Magistrate’s court (which) is really easy to use across the state of Georgia. You don’t need a lawyer. The filing fees are not terrible, particularly against the amount of money you need to repair your vehicle.”
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