Sinclair slapped with fine for contamination affecting 1,000 drivers
Sinclair slapped with fine for contamination affecting 1,000 drivers
How fuel additives clean your car’s engine and fuel system
As time passes, the fuel system in your vehicle can get a little dirty as carbon deposits build up and other contaminants clog up the area.
The company responsible for fuel contamination that affected at least 1,000 Colorado drivers in January got hit with a fine March 5.
HF Sinclair was ordered to pay a fine of just shy of $366,000 after 365,694 gallons of unleaded fuel contaminated with diesel fuel was sold to gas distributors.
A total of 49 gas stations around Colorado’s Front Range were affected by the contamination, including three in Larimer County: the Costco gas station in Timnath, the Safeway fuel station at Drake and Taft Hill roads, and the Big D Oil Co. station in Wellington.
The problem occurred around 2 p.m. Jan. 7 at the HF Sinclair Denver Product Terminal in Henderson when as it was receiving a pipeline shipment of diesel fuel, according to an investigation report released by the Colorado Division of Oil and Public Safety.
An improperly opened valve allowed that fuel to go into an unleaded storage tank, the department’s report says.
Almost 1.7 million gallons were contaminated in the storage tank, but in total, over 2.58 million gallons were contaminated across the state when the fuel went into the stations’ tanks.
A total of 1,090 complaints were received by the division, a news release from the agency said.
The fine of $365,694 amounts to $1 for every gallon of contaminated fuel sold to distributors.
The division is also requiring Sinclair to share its internal investigation report, analyze and report its fuel quality on a monthly basis through September, and show what is it doing to keep the mistake from happening again.
Sinclair is implementing two-person verification for incoming pipeline cuts and product transfers and a checklist for that process, according to the division.
The Oil and Public Safety division said in the report that Sinclair knew about the breach at 6 a.m. Jan. 8 but did not notify them.
Instead, the division said, it contacted Sinclair on Jan. 9 after receiving complaints. Drivers reported their vehicles were stalling, sputtering and showing check engine lights shortly after buying fuel.
The company told the agency it had been working with distributors to replace the fuel.
The division of Oil and Public Safety said it then asked the company to provide a list of affected stations so it could send out a warning.
What to do if you think you pumped contaminated gas
Anyone who purchased gas at the affected stations starting in the afternoon of Jan. 7 and into Jan. 8 should contact the station where they pumped the gas to file a claim.
If retailers are denying claims or being unresponsive, the state says to file a complaint with the Division of Oil and Public Safety online at ops.colorado.gov or by calling 303-866-4967.