In this large franchised service station on the outskirts of Blois, ordinary diesel is displayed this Thursday evening March 3 at 1.89 euros, against 1.79, in the automated station of the adjoining supermarket. The prices go up every day, for one as for the other. So much so that the large luminous totem on the other side of the road no longer keeps pace: it still indicates 1.69, a ten-day “old” rate. « We have already received two complaints but the repairman does not come »sighs Sophie (assumed first name), the affable saleswoman who, from this counter protected by a Plexiglas wall, sees the behavior of motorists evolve.
« At the beginning of the month, people always fill up without thinking. There, many grit their teeth, do not exceed round amounts, 30, 40 or 50, as if to stick to their budget, as if it were already the end of the month. » Despite the service station’s prices, many of its customers are young and their vehicles are tired: the supermarket’s automatic stations, where you enter and withdraw your bank card before picking up the gun, require you to have at least 130 or 150 euros in his bank account: « Here, no deposit, if you have 20 euros on your account, you can still ride. » Since this winter, its boss has still imposed prepayment at the counter, after repeated thefts. « Some think that we apply the rule to the customer’s head, but that’s for everyone, even gentlemen in Porsches. Besides, they also laugh »she says.
Oriflammes
A boy in white jogging, hood up, gets out of his “tuned” Golf. Impatient, he asks for 20 euros of unleaded, goes back to the pump, comes back to the cash register and this time asks for 30 euros of ethanol. Then disappears. “Young people come to mix with this fuel at 86 cents per litre. I see more and more of it, with a higher and higher ratio of ethanol. One day, one of them explained to me that the breakdowns were minor, that they were small parts that were not too expensive to change, especially for older vehicles. » But beware of accidents. “Sometimes I remind them that in the event of a claim, if the adjuster discovers the subterfuge, the insurance will not cover anything… Many don’t care »she regrets.
Further on, at a supermarket station in La Chaussée-Saint-Victor, Armand, a retired pruner, fills up on his Picasso: 92.50 euros on the meter. Does he drive less to spare his wallet? « Absolutely not ! I still prefer to eat shit. » He explains: « Before, we only bought organic because my wife liked it. Now we go back to the discount »explains this man who says he no longer wants to reduce his outings, which have been hampered for too long by the pandemic.
Behind him, Martine, a manicurist in a Fiat Cinquecento, watches the stations and their banners touting cost prices: « 1.78 of the cost price. You believe it, do you ? And they are where “yellow vests” ? They expect us to be at 2 bucks a litre? When it was at 1.40 they occupied all the roundabouts. » On the sidewalk opposite, in a competing station, a man in a threadbare parka is enjoying a tray of tabbouleh. The Quechua tent of this homeless person has replaced the vendor’s cabin since the site was automated. He is no longer disturbed: “As they are the most expensive, now it’s deserted and I’m cushy. »