A 2008 newspaper report said 30 per cent of all gas vendors have had at least one pump fail a government accuracy inspection.A 2008 newspaper report said 30 per cent of all gas vendors have had at least one pump fail a government accuracy inspection. (istock)

Gas stations may soon see higher fines if they bilk customers with poorly calibrated fuel pumps.

Industry Minister Tony Clement is scheduled to announce new consumer-protection legislation Thursday morning, which sources say will usher in stiffer penalties for service stations that operate inaccurate pumps.

Retailers would have to undergo more frequent pump inspections and would be held liable for misreadings that cause consumers to be overbilled for gasoline. The bill would hike the minimum fine for a first offence to $10,000 from $1,000, with repeat offenders facing a maximum $50,000 penalty.

The issue came to the fore in the summer of 2008, when a newspaper report on government inspections of gas pumps said nearly five per cent of pumps tested in Canada failed their inspection by dispensing less fuel than they should have. The report also said 30 per cent of all gas vendors tested have had at least one pump fail an inspection by shortchanging consumers.

The Conservative government reacted by promising more regular scrutiny of pumps and higher fines for mismeasurements, but the tougher penalties were never enacted.

Gas pumps are inspected when installed and are randomly checked by agents from Measurement Canada.

With files from The Canadian Press