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Help
prevent car problems!
In
light of the news about several cars in the county being
disabled by contaminated gasoline, here are a couple
tips that will help prevent you from receiving bad gas.
While there
is snow on the ground and during the coming thaw, fuel
you car at the station with the least amount of snow or
water standing on their property, especially in the area
where the gas trucks deliver the fuel.
If the
station is receiving fuel, go somewhere else if you need
to fuel right then or wait about an hour if you prefer
that station. That gives any sediment in the storage
tank that may be stirred up by the delivery time to
settle back out of the gas.
If you do
get bad gas notify the station and Weights and Measures
immediately. The longer you wait the less chance there
is of doing anything about it.
"Making Spokane the Best Place to Shop in the Region"
Facilitating a Strong Economy
On
any given day, every American makes
dozens of purchase decisions — at the grocery
store and the gas pump, to pay a taxi fare or feed a
parking meter, for a yard of fabric or a gallon of
home heating oil. As diverse as the character of
these "daily necessities" may be, they all have one
ingredient in common: the trust that is built into
every transaction by a weights and measures program.
-
•In
1906 the Spokane city council took the lead in consumer protection by
establishing the first Weights and
Measures department in the state of
Washington. The
state did not establish their program
until 1913. For over one hundred the
department has worked on the publics
behalf to maintain equity in the
marketplace.
-
While the state
inspects scales and gas pumps
every 3-4 years, it is the goal of the
City of Spokane’s Weights and Measures
to inspect these and other measuring
devices every year.
Consumer Protection
-
•The
City of Spokane takes a
proactive approach to
Consumer Protection.
-
Inspectors regularly
check packaged goods,
meat, and deli items to
insure they contain the
weight declared on the
label.
-
They also conduct price
verification test on
store scanners to help
ensure that consumers
pay the advertised
price for the
products they buy.
-
Taximeters on taxis
licensed to do business
in Spokane are tested
for accuracy annually as
part of the licensing
process.
No other city in Washington, except Seattle,
provides the consumer with
the level of protection that
is available in the City of
Spokane.
In eastern Washington only
the City of Spokane
has
an on going program that
tests taximeters, scanners
and commodities.
The actions of the city council 100 years ago has served
to make the City of Spokane
the
best place in the
region to shop and to do
business.
Economic
Impact
•
A study commissioned
by the State of
Washington in
the early 1990’s
concluded that where
there is an
active
weights and measures
program, the typical
family of four saves
about $650 a year.
That is money they
would be overcharged
on purchases if
Weights and Measures
was not around.
That means Spokane
consumers save over
32 MILLION
dollars each
year. That is in
1990’s dollars, when
gasoline cost about
$1.30 a gallon.
Adjusted
for inflation
the total in 2007
dollars would be
much more
Consumer Tips
-
•Watch
the
weighing
or
measuring
device.
Make
sure it
starts
at zero
or you
may be
paying
for
something
you
didn’t
get.
-
Check
you
receipts
for
price
accuracy,
especially
on sale
items.
-
Check
that
items
weighed
in front
of you
either
have no
wrapping
or
container,
or the
scale
makes
allowance
for it.
When
sold by
weight,
all
items
must be
sold by
NET
WEIGHT;
the
wrapping
or
container
should
not be
included.
This
also
applies
to
packaged
items,
which
must
indicate
net
weight.
-
When
buying
firewood,
measure
it on
the
truck
whenever
possible.
A cord
is 128
cubic
feet
when
neatly
stacked.
Get a
receipt
that
specifies
the
quantity
purchased
and the
price
paid
along
with the
vendors
name ,
address
and
phone
number.
-
Package
size may
be
deceptive…remember
KING
SIZE,
GIANT
SIZE,
FAMILY
SIZE,
etc mean
nothing.
Compare
prices
per like
units
between
different
sizes
and
different
brands.
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