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Florida’s Attorney General is ordering 16 Flash Foods gas stations to pay 42-thousand dollars to customers who were ripped off at the pump from September 12th through the 20th. As Whitney Ray tells us, oil companies who supply gas to the stations could be next in line to cough up cash for price gouging.

Hear it Here: State Investigates Gas Wholesalers

In September, as Hurricane Ike Ripped through the Gulf of Mexico, Floridians rushed to the pump to fill up their tanks, some angry customer paid more than 5 dollars a gallon.

More than 15,000 calls poured into two state price gouging hotlines. The Attorney General’s office has settled with three gas retailers. The latest Flash Foods, will have to pay back customers 42,000 dollars… but the investigation doesn’t stop there.

Attorney General Bill McCollum is working to reach a settlement with TransMontaigne, for raising the cost of its fuel 1.50 dollars a gallon.

“We are cautiously optimist we can reach a reasonable settlement with them, but if we can’t we will be in litigation,” said McCollum.

The State’s Consumers Services Department has already met with TransMontaigne once.

“They are supposable going to met with them a second time to provide us some answers and then we’ll reach a conclusion on where we go with the case,” said Department Spokesman Terry McElroy.

TransMontaigne isn’t the only wholesaler being investigated. The state is investigating 20 other companies, but not releasing the names of wholesales until they have more evidence.

Flash Foods customers looking to be reimbursed for their charges can contact call the Attorney General’s fraud hotline at 1-866-966-7226 or visit the AG’s website http://www.myfloridalegal.com. To qualify customers need a proof of purchase.