Frequently Asked Questions

Click on a question below to see the answer.

Why does an additional charge show on my statement after using pay at the pump?

If you use a credit card at the fuel pump, the bank that issues your card may place a hold on your credit card for the amount of your intended purchase. For example, if you select to buy $60 in fuel, the credit card will have a hold for $60. This is not a charge that you have incurred; it is simply a temporary reduction in your credit limit on your card. This hold is often referred to as a “pre-authorization.”

This hold is usually released when the completed transaction is received by your credit card company. This can take several days, depending on your credit card company’s policy.

For more information regarding your card’s hold policy, please call the customer service number located on the back of your card. If you wish to avoid having a hold placed on your credit card account, you can pay for your fuel inside the store.

Why does the price of gasoline change so often?

The Greater Victoria retail petroleum market is occupied by retailers with largely two different strategies. One is those retailers, such as Peninsula Co-op, who retail petroleum as their core line of business, and the second are those who use petroleum as a loss leader to generate traffic for some other core line of business, such as a food warehouse store.

Present frequent and significant fluctuations in the retail price of gasoline in the Greater Victoria market has been driven by various petroleum retails attempting to address their market share position. This has resulted in frequent and significant retail price changes at a time when the price of crude oil and refined gasoline products has remained relatively stable. The fluctuation in retail diesel price has not been impacted and has remained relatively stable, as has the cost of refined diesel product.

Peninsula Co-op’s pricing strategy has and always will continue to be that of following the retail market price. Our small, locally owned company is not a large enough force in the marketplace to drive gasoline pricing. If we were perceived by one of our large, multi-national competitors to be engaging in a price war, their much deeper pockets would ensure they survived far longer than Peninsula Co-op. We have a responsibility to our members and staff to remain financially healthy. While all consumers may benefit in the short term by purchasing at a reduced price point, focusing on long term pricing strategies remains the focus at Peninsula Co-op as it provides much stronger financial stability for our Co-op and our member/owners.

It is important to remember that throughout the year you will sometimes guess right and purchase gasoline at a low price, and other times you may be a day late and purchase gasoline at a higher price. Over the course of a year it will balance out.

Peninsula Co-op rewards the loyalty of our member/owners for their contribution to our financial success through our annual patronage allocation. Last year, members received a 5.0 cent per litre rebate on all their fuel purchases. READ MORE

How does the price of crude oil affect the gasoline price?

Crude oil is only one of the factors, in fact the price of crude oil accounts for only roughly 50% of what Canadians pay for a litre of gasoline. Other factors include:

Taxes (Federal, Provincial and Municipal)
Transportation costs (don’t forget we live on an island)
Refinery production costs
Local market conditions
North American supply and demand for gasoline

Demand for wholesale fuel can change as much as 25% between the busy summer driving months and the slower winter months. Weather events such as hurricanes affecting refinery production in the US can also change the North American supply. International events such as a political crisis in the Middle East can affect global supply, which will affect our wholesale fuel costs on Vancouver Island.