Jamaica: Gas pumps accurate, says retailers association JGRA

"I have never heard of anybody shorting gas," Barnes told the press."No gas station in Jamaica could be mad enough to try to steal anybody," he sternly added.

Although a service station display-board may show the price per litre of gasoline and the gas pumps show a figure delivered, consumers have no guarantee about the accuracy of the amount that is actually going in a vehicle's tank. Barnes however contended that all petrol pumps are accurate and in order as the Bureau of Standards Jamaica BSJ) routinely checked service stations regarding the accuracy of the pumps.

The BSJ is charged with setting and monitoring measurements and standards in the island.

Barnes said that petrol stations recently tested by the BSJ showed negligible difference, or none at all, between the amount shown on the pumps and the amount delivered. He nonetheless cautioned that consumer should be vigilant while purchasing petrol.

"There are some older pumps where the gas can be delivered even if it is not at zero," Barnes explained. "A motorist before you could buy $600 gas and if you order $1000 only $400 would be pumped into the tank if the pump was not zeroed."

According to Barnes more modern pumps, on the contrary have, to be at zero before they are able to deliver gasoline. "The onus is on the customer to be sure that they are getting what they purchase, he charged.

In the meantime, BSJ officials are adamant that despite a deficiency in the number of field officers, adequate tests are being done on petrol pumps islandwide.

"We have a programme in place where they are checked every six months but we also have a regulatory programme where we do random checks," Orine Henry Blair, director of the BSJ regulatory division said. She added that a regional office outside of Kingston covered the rural areas while officers from the Corporate Area office inspected petrol stations in Kingston.