Petrol station adds holiday surcharge

A Tasman Bay service station has joined restaurants and cafes by putting a surcharge on its petrol prices to offset higher wage costs resulting from new holidays legislation.

The move was today called opportunism by Consumers' Institute chief executive David Russell, who said there was a danger that such surcharges could spread well beyond the hospitality industry.

Perry's Auto Services in Mapua, 19km southeast of Motueka, slapped a 15 per cent surcharge on petrol sales over the Christmas-New Year holiday period to cover what owner Barry Atkins said was a 25 per cent jump in staffing costs.

"It's either that or we shut the doors."

He said the increase was caused by the Holidays Act which came into force last April, requiring employers to pay staff working on statutory holidays time-and-a-half, plus a day off in lieu.

Mr Atkins said he was unsure if the surcharge had negatively affected business.

He would consider its effect before deciding whether to repeat it on the next public holiday.

The surcharge applied to petrol only, as it would have been too complicated to change prices for other goods on the station's computer, he said.

Mr Russell said a petrol surcharge was "perfectly legal" as long as it was clearly advertised before drivers filled up.

But he said the move did not bode well for New Zealand consumers.

"Those who are doing it are opportunists. They're taking advantage of a situation that's been created by the Government with the arrival of the Holidays Act.

"It started with the hospitality industry and it's moving through to accommodation. Now you're seeing it with petrol stations.

"I hope it spreads no further. I hope common sense prevails."

Nelson Tasman Chamber of Commerce president Paul Rosanowski said all businesses were entitled to put prices up where they believed it was appropriate, and customers could decide if they were prepared to pay more.

"(But) from a consumer's point of view, it's probably better if these people could just spread the cost out over the whole year."

- NZPA