As gas prices soar, this Philadelphia county is inspecting gas pumps for accuracy

The pain at the pump is being felt across the Philadelphia area, but a crew in Bucks County is working to make sure drivers get what they pay for.

"Usually that's $20, $25," Amber from Fox Chase, who filled up for $40.10 on Friday, said. 

Since the U.S.-Israeli joint missile strikes on Iran, gas prices have soared across the country. According to AAA, the price for a gallon of regular in the Philadelphia 5-County region stood at $3.64 on Friday. That's up $0.34/g in just the last week, and more than $0.60 since this time in February.

"I used to have my big SUV. I don't think I'd be able to survive," Amber said.

Bucks County officials say that when the prices rise, they start getting calls.

"Every time gas prices rise, we get a lot more calls from residents that they have concerns that they're not getting what they pay for at the gas pump," Michael Bannon, Director of the county's Consumer Protection and Weights and Measures teams, said. 

That's when the Weights and Measures team gets rolling. This three-man team is out all year long and inspects every gas pump in the county at least once a year. But when the calls, texts, and emails come in, they take extra notice.

The crew will make unannounced stops to gas stations across Bucks County, like on Friday when they pulled into a Sunoco on Street Road in Feasterville. Over two hours, the team checks every line for every pump at the station – and they let CBS News Philadelphia tag along to have a look.

"We're gonna do the regular, the mid-grade, and we're going to do the super," Deputy Sealer Chris Tomlinson said.

The crews pump five gallons of each blend of gasoline into tanks attached to a truck, mostly looking to see if, well, five gallons is actually what comes out. Officials say the tolerance they allow is just about two tablespoons per gallon. It may sound like a small amount, but when prices are high, it adds up quickly.

"The higher the price goes, the more that amount is money you're losing," John DeVito with Weights and Measures said. 

If a pump comes in under tolerance, that means you're not getting as much gas as you should. The crews will then tag and lock the pump until the issue is fixed. Fortunately for the Sunoco, on Friday, they didn't have that issue.

"So you're actually getting a little bit more?" asked CBS News Philadelphia reporter Dan Snyder as Tomlinson showed him how to read the gauges on the tank. "Yeah, on this one, you're getting a little bit more."

And once they're checked and approved, crews put a sticker on each pump, showing the month they were last inspected and a phone number to call with any concerns.

County officials say each year, around 4% to 5% of pumps they inspect fail the test. But more often than not, they're not finding fraud or predatory practices.

"We don't find issues that somebody came in and tampered much anymore with these new pumps," Tomlinson said. "It usually comes down to something mechanical in the device."

Weights and Measures crews also check the timing on the air-filling stations and vacuums while they're here. What these teams don't do, however, is check the actual makeup of the gasoline. Testing for water content or octane levels of gas has to be done by the state, according to officials.

And while they may not be able to bring gas prices down themselves, they do want to make sure you get exactly what you're paying for.

"We want to make sure that you're getting the quality of gas they're paying for and the product that they're paying for, as far as quantity," said Bannon.

If you have a concern, you can call the Bucks County Consumer Protection/Weights and Measures Office at (215) 348-6060.