Fine foreign cars buying RON95, why fine us? – PDAM

Presently, if a non-Malaysian buys subsidised fuel (RON 95 petrol) at a Malaysian petrol station, the dealer can be fined up to RM1 million or jailed for three years – but the foreigner gets away scot-free, says a report by The Star.

Exasperated by this and the increasing number of foreign nationals exploiting the situation, the Petrol Dealers Association of Malaysia (PDAM) wants legislation to penalise such foreigners instead of the dealers themselves.

The association’s communication and media secretary Gordon Lim said it was difficult for petrol dealers to keep a watch on foreign cars that use petrol pumps located at the far end of stations and use credit cards to quickly fill up.

“It is unfair to penalise petrol station dealers. The dealers do not want to sell RON 95 to foreigners. The profit margin in such transactions is minimal, so it’s not practical or worthwhile to break the law.

“As long as the buyers are not penalised, they will always keep trying,” Lim said, adding that Singaporean plates are similar to Sabahan plates, making it difficult to accurately identify foreign-registered vehicles.

On the suggestion that an attendant be stationed at each pump to monitor foreign vehicles, Lim said this was not viable as it would drastically escalate operational costs, citing the “razor-thin” margins under the automatic pricing mechanism (APM).

Lim said that would also increase reliance on foreign labour, as locals were not generally willing to be pump attendants. “It would also defeat the self-service policy at petrol stations,” he added.

Would the problem go away with the start of targeted RON 95 petrol subsidies? Lim said PDAM was still in the dark regarding this, but noted that there would be no issue if subsidies are removed completely.

This age-old issue recently resurfaced due to the thousands of cars entering Johor from Singapore for Chinese New Year. The Star reports that a video of a Singaporean car pumping RON 95 at a Johor Bahru petrol station’s far end a few days ago went viral, and that the Johor domestic trade and cost of living ministry (KPDN) has issued a reminder that foreign vehicles are barred from buying RON 95 petrol.

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