Oil Industry Defends Stance on ‘Hot Fuel’

An attorney for the oil industry said Friday that it isn’t fraudulent to sell “hot fuel” because it is legal to sell gasoline and diesel in the U.S. that’s not adjusted for temperature.

That argument was made in a Kansas City, Kan., federal courtroom as the industry sought to quash more than 40 lawsuits seeking damages for consumers who have bought fuel hotter than the 60-degree industry standard. The hearing at U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., was to hear arguments about the oil industry’s motion to dismiss the suits.


James Tuite, an attorney for the Washington law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, said the lawsuits are claiming a “breathtaking” breadth of fraud by attacking a method of selling fuel that has been used since the beginning of the motor age.

But laws and regulations either call for or allow a gallon of fuel with a volume of 231 cubic inches, Tuite said, and there is no legal duty to adjust the gallon or price to reflect the effect of temperature. And since it’s not illegal, he argued, the oil companies and fuel retailers can’t be accused of fraud.

“We are not talking about consumer fraud,” he said. “We’re going to give you 231 cubic inches, and this is what you can hold us to.”

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