Hurricane Beryl ambushed southeastern Texas, flooding neighborhoods and knocking out power for days in the beginning of July. Winds gusts of 70 miles per hour were “common” in the area, according to the National Weather Service, as storm surge flooding devastated homes and businesses.
As victims grappled with the destruction and loss of power , some discovered an uptick in prices at the gas pump.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee called the price increases ”excessive” and a violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act (DTPA), according to a lawsuit filed on Aug. 19.
“The DTPA prohibits taking advantage of a disaster declared by the Texas Governor,” according to court documents. Basic necessities such as fuel, food and medicine cannot be sold at an “exorbitant or excessive price,” the lawsuit said. A disaster declaration was made for Harris County on July 6, according to a news release from acting Gov. Dan Patrick.
The county is suing two gas stations accused of price gouging, saying they raised gas prices as high as 44% after Hurricane Beryl hit the Houston area, according to court documents filed Aug. 19.
Premium gas at a Shell gas station, located at 5003 N. Main Street in Baytown, cost $3.80 per gallon on July 8, the day Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas, according to the lawsuit. The following day, the same premium gas cost $5.49 per gallon, a 44% markup, the complaint said.
Regular unleaded fuel at 5910 West Loop South Freeway Svc Road in Bellaire cost $3.03 per gallon on July 8. By July 10, the Shell gasoline cost $4.29 per gallon, according to the lawsuit. Later that day, after several customers complained, the price was lowered to $3.79 per gallon, court documents said. Those prices were a 25% to 41% markup from the pre-hurricane cost.
The gas station in Bellaire is owned and operated by BCTM Aviation LLC, Real Estate Chapter Texas LLC and Houston Ventures, LLC, according to court records, and the gas station in Baytown is owned by A2S Petrotech LLC.
The businesses could not be reached for comment. Attorney information was not listed.
Menefee said other gas stations in the county were also accused of price gouging, but they responded to cease and desist requests, according to an Aug. 19 news release by the Harris County Attorney’s Office.
“These companies we’re suing today, however, refused to provide information justifying their egregious price increase,” Menefee said in the news release. The county is seeking $250,000 in monetary relief from each company and a demand for judgment, according to the lawsuit.
An investigator spoke with Bellaire’s gas station clerk and manager who said that regular unleaded gas cost $3.79 per gallon prior to the hurricane, despite reports that it cost only $3.03 per gallon, according to court records.
The gas station manager said “upper management” sets the prices and that they got permission to lower prices from $4.29 to $3.79 on July 10 after several customers complained, the lawsuit said.
The gas station did not provide receipts of this and did not comply with a cease and desist letter, the county said.
In Baytown, the gas station accused of price gouging told an investigator that its price increase was due to the station being low on premium gas.
“When really low there is a chance of mud getting into gas,” the manager told the county investigator. The manager said the price was increased to deter people from purchasing premium gas.
The gas station never provided investigators with documentation to justify the price increase, according to the lawsuit, even after a cease and desist letter was sent.
The county said they are continuing to investigate other reports of price gouging in the wake of the hurricane, adding they received over 250 complaints after the storm, according to the news release.
Price gouging complaints have been made against grocery stores, hotels and stores across Harris County, KHOU reported on Aug. 7.
Baytown is about a 25-mile drive southeast from Houston. Bellaire is about an 8-mile drive southwest from Houston.
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