Gas retailers offer some relief from price pain

Eric Lai

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Q: Which gas retailer offers the best discount/points program?

A: Consumers can ever-so-slightly lessen the pain of fill-ups by taking advantage of loyalty programs offered by various gas retailers and their credit card affiliates.

Basic cards listed below have no annual fee, but gold/platinum versions may.

Canadian Tire Gas Bar patrons can save from two cents to 10 cents per litre with a Canadian Tire Gas Advantage MasterCard (ctfs.com/english/gasadvantage). Gas discount rate is based on total monthly MasterCard purchases from any retailer(s).

Alternatively, those who pay cash/debit can collect Canadian Tire money, redeemable on store purchases.

A 60-litre fill-up earns 25 cents in CT money, for example. But with the weekly flyer or in-store multiplier coupon, typically six to 12 times, you'd get $1.50 to $3 in CT money on that same 60-litre purchase. CT Options MasterCard users receive the multiplier amount without coupons.

Esso offers Extra points (essoextra.com) and Aeroplan Miles (aeroplan.com), and Shell offers Air Miles (airmiles.ca). Points are redeemable on various rewards in their respective catalogues.

American Express Air Miles and Air Miles MasterCard holders receive bonus Air Miles from Shell as well as the regular issue from the card-issuer on total monthly spending. Esso patrons get bonus points when using an RBC Royal Bank Esso Visa.

Petro-Canada (petro-points.com) offers a Citibank Petro-Points MasterCard that earns an on-the-spot two cents per litre gas discount. Users also earn Petro-Points, redeemable for catalogue rewards, on all card purchases.

Patrons can also collect Petro-Points, Esso Extra points or Air Miles when using other forms of payment at the respective retailers.

Pioneer (pioneer.ca/bonusbucks) has the Bonus Bucks program. A 60-litre fill-up, for example, earns 50 cents in Bonus Bucks with regular gas or diesel; $1 with mid-grade; or $1.50 with premium.

Bonus Bucks can be used on any future purchase, including gas, at Pioneer stations. It's now a card program, but paper Bonus Bucks issued in past are still valid.

At Ultramar (ultramar.ca), Supreme gas is discounted three cents per litre on Thursdays at participating retailers.

ROAD RAVE: Upset about a bad road? Don't just steam about it; let those in charge know so they can fix it.

For example, East Valhalla Drive is a one-way road joining Hwy. 7 and Cochrane Drive in Markham. After dodging oncoming wrong-way traffic three times on that puny 200-metre road over a one month period, I contacted the Town of Markham.

Within days, the Town's Operations department responded by installing additional signage throughout the area to more clearly indicate that East Valhalla is, indeed, a one-way road.

On a similar note, the intersection of High Tech Road and Bayview Avenue in Richmond Hill was recently modified by adding a dual left-turn lane (marked by signs and pavement markings) to ease congestion for drivers turning north onto Bayview.

Last year, I'd suggested this change to town staff since many motorists were making illegal left turns from the second lane anyhow. So folks in the Hill, go ahead with the double-lefts from the centre lane, they're legal now.

Thanks to roads and engineering staff in Markham (markham.ca) and Richmond Hill (richmondhill.ca) for resolving these safety concerns.

Email your non-mechanical questions to Eric Lai at wheels@thestar.ca.

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