500 of 8,000 gas pumps fail in Montgomery County; no card skimmers found

Montgomery County inspectors visited each of the county’s 203 gas stations and checked more than 8,000 pumps this year.

Why? To make sure consumers get what they pay for: a gallon of gasoline.

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“When a pump fails to pass our tests, it means the results sometimes are to the disadvantage of the consumer and sometimes to the disadvantage of the retailer,” county Auditor Karl Keith said. “Our inspectors are there to look out for the interest of both consumers and retailers in order to bring fairness to the marketplace.”

The checks that took place between April and October found more 500 failed gas pumps during the initial inspection.

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Inspectors check the calibration accuracy by pumping five gallons of gas into a certified five-gallon container. They also examine the credit card reader for illegal devices.

Due to the ongoing threat of credit card skimmers, Keith and his staff have increased inspection efforts. More than 2,200 gas pump inspections for credit card skimmers were performed as part of three countywide skimmer sweeps.

The April sweep uncovered five skimmers, the most ever publicly found over a three-day period in a single county in Ohio. No skimmers have been found since that time in Montgomery County.

Keith recommends consumers take the following measures to protect their financial information:

  • Pay with cash
  • Use a credit card rather than a debit card
  • Use pumps closest to the attendant
  • Monitor bank and credit card statements
  • Report anything that indicates a pump has been tampered with
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