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Meijer mix-up as drivers put diesel in their gas tanks
In March, Meijer alerted customers and the public that there was a mix-up leaving some people with diesel instead of unleaded gasoline. That notice went to customers who bought gas between 6 a.m. Tuesday, March 17, and 1 p.m. Thursday, March 19.
MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - More drivers are coming forward saying they got bad fuel at a Macomb County Meijer Express gas station, an issue the company has been working on for days after alerting drivers about a fuel mix-up.
Big picture view:
The Meijer Express gas station is located on Groesbeck Highway where this all took place.
Mike Pfeiffer says he drove his Jeep Wrangler to the gas station on St. Patrick’s Day, put some gas in and drove for a few days before noticing white smoke and other problems clearly indicating something wrong.
In March, Meijer alerted customers and the public that there was a mix-up leaving some people with diesel instead of unleaded gasoline. That notice went to customers who bought gas between 6 a.m. Tuesday, March 17, and 1 p.m. Thursday, March 19.
Mike says his Jeep is in the shop awaiting repairs as the dealership is waiting to hear back from Meijer. He says Meijer only offered him 100,000 MPERK Points, which he says is about $76 worth of gas. He says it’s long past time for a fix.
"It sounds like he had probably a decent amount of gasoline in his car already and then when he put the diesel in it mixed through so it was diluted enough where it took a little bit of time for it to start affecting the drive of his car and that’s why he got a few days out of it. So if he drains the tank, cleans the injectors and probably replaces the spark plugs, he’s probably OK to go," said Kenny Walters from Kenny's Lakes Area Auto Experts.
Dig deeper:
Mike says he got emails from Meijer which blamed a third party fuel provider for the mistake. Meijer says they shut down the pumps and started reaching out to customers who may have been impacted, while promising reimbursements for everyone who has to pay for repairs. Mike says that hasn’t happened for him yet.
The other side:
Update: A spokesperson from Meijer released a statement.
"We are reimbursing all impacted customers for issues caused by this incident. Our customer care team left Mike a voicemail and sent him an email in the last week but haven’t been able to connect yet," the statement. "They reached out to him again this morning and are looking forward to connecting with him live.
"The mPerks points are one of the steps we’re taking in addition to reimbursement. We apologize for any misunderstanding and we are committed to working with Mike — and other impacted customers."
The Source: Information for this report is from a customer and a spokesperson from Meijer.