Shell USA, Inc is encourage to investigate the handling of fuel reward promotions at Lincoln Square Market-Shell, 185 Washington St, Weymouth, MA 02188, on April 16, 2026, at approximately 2:54 PM.
At the time of the incident, I had both a T-Mobile Tuesdays fuel reward and a one-time Shell reward applied to my purchase: a 15-cent-per-gallon discount and a 20-cent-per-gallon discount. Combined with the regular 5-cent member discount, the total discount reduced the gas price to $3.799 per gallon. These rewards were clearly shown in the Fuel Rewards app, and I had waited a long time to stack and use them together for a full purchase.
I entered my member phone number in the store, the discounts were successfully applied, and I prepaid $30 by credit card for gas at approximately 2:54 PM. I was expecting to use the rewards on the full prepaid amount.
However, pump #3 stopped when the meter reached only $6.50, which was only a little more than one gallon of gas. I returned to the store to ask what had happened, and the station owner told me that there was no gas available. A refund receipt for $23.50 was then printed at approximately 2:58 PM.
After this occurred, I attempted to pay again in order to continue pumping gas, but I was unable to use the discounts again because the T-Mobile reward and Shell reward were one-time-only offers and had already disappeared after the first failed transaction. As a result, I left the gas station without completing the intended purchase and without being able to recover the rewards that had already been consumed.
Because of this failed transaction, I lost the benefit of both rewards through no fault of my own. The combined 40-cent-per-gallon discount was effectively applied only to the $6.50 transaction, which was approximately 1.712 gallons, instead of the full $30 purchase I intended to make. In the end, the rewards saved me only about $0.60, rather than the roughly $3 to $4 in savings I reasonably expected from using them on the full prepaid transaction.
What concerns me most is that the station accepted the discounted transaction, allowed the one-time rewards to be consumed, then the pump stopped almost immediately, and afterward I was unable to use those rewards again. From my perspective, the station operator either improperly handled the transaction or allowed a situation in which a customer could lose one-time promotional rewards on an incomplete sale and then be forced to purchase fuel later at the regular price. This felt unfair, misleading, and financially harmful.
I am also concerned by the possibility that the pump may have been intentionally stopped or that the station knowingly allowed the transaction to proceed despite being unable to deliver the prepaid amount of fuel. In particular, the circumstances raise the troubling possibility that the pump may have been stopped by the station owner himself because honoring the sale at the discounted price of $3.799 per gallon may have caused the station to sell fuel at little profit or at a loss. I cannot confirm that this occurred, but the sequence of events raises serious questions that I believe warrant investigation.
I respectfully request that your office review this matter as a possible instance of unfair or deceptive business conduct affecting a Massachusetts consumer. I also request that the station be asked to preserve and review any relevant evidence, including:
CCTV footage from approximately 2:45 PM to 3:15 PM on April 16, 2026;
Pump #3 transaction and operating logs for that same time period; and
Any records showing how the rewards were applied and consumed in connection with this failed transaction.
I further request assistance in obtaining an appropriate resolution, including restoration or reimbursement of the lost T-Mobile Tuesdays and Shell rewards. read more
