Amerigas Blue Rhino

The investigation revealed ample evidence to provide us with a reason to believe that AmeriGas and Blue Rhino entered into an unlawful agreement. The purpose of this Analysis to Aid Public Comment is to invite and facilitate public comment concerning the proposed orders. It is not intended to constitute an official interpretation of the proposed Consent Agreements and the accompanying proposed orders or in any way to modify their terms. You are also solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive health information, like medical records or other individually identifiable health information. In addition, do not include any “rade secret or any commercial or financial information which .

• Our IP team combines top-notch technical and legal knowledge.
• AmeriGas and Blue Rhino are the only manufacturers who can supply exchange tanks to large national retailers, except on a limited basis.
• Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.
• AmeriGas publicly announced its fill reduction plan on July 10, 2008.

Before you go to the store or order a home delivery, make sure your tank is acceptable for exchange. The consent agreements in this matter settle alleged violations of federal law prohibiting unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the administrative complaint issued by the Commission and the terms of the consent orders—embodied in the consent agreements—that would settle these allegations.

Blue Rhino Propane Exchange

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These tanks are portable, steel tanks, prefilled with propane, primarily used for propane barbeque grills and patio heaters. There are no widely used substitutes for exchange tanks that provide a similar ease of use. Consumers typically purchase these prefilled tanks at home improvement stores, hardware stores, mass merchandisers, supermarkets, convenience stores, and gas stations. The Commission has voted to accept proposed Consent Agreements to remedy allegations that AmeriGas and Blue Rhino restrained competition by colluding to reduce the amount of propane in tanks sold to Walmart. I write separately to explain my support for this enforcement action and the proposed settlements. The FTC complaint alleges that in 2008, Blue Rhino and AmeriGas, which together control 80 percent of the propane tank market, each reduced the level of propane in exchange tanks from to 15 pounds from 17, without a reduction in wholesale price.

Propane bottles should only be filled to about 90% of full. Generally, a 5 gallon bottle should only have about 4.5 gallons in it. When propane shoots out of that hole, the bottle is filled to the proper level.

Use the PDF linked in the document sidebar for the official electronic format. Blue Rhino accepts any brand of tank, so all you have to do is drop your empty tank beside the display, have a store employee swap your tank for a full one or two, and enjoy the rest of your day. You did not purchase the tank for the purpose of reselling them to consumers. If you think you and others may have a class action claim, give us a call. Our legal team is experienced, professional, and ready to help.

If you are using public inspection listings for legal research, you should verify the contents of the documents against a final, official edition of the Federal Register. Only official editions of the Federal Register provide legal notice to the public and judicial notice to the courts under 44 U.S.C. 1503 & 1507.Learn more here. The OFR/GPO partnership is committed to presenting accurate and reliable regulatory information on FederalRegister.gov with the objective of establishing the XML-based Federal Register as an ACFR-sanctioned publication in the future.

Buy, Exchange, or Refill Your Propane Tank!

Lowe’s, Blue Rhino’s largest customer, agreed to the 15-pound tanks but only if all other retailers went along with it, according to the complaint. Whether the initial decision to reduce fill levels was the result of independent decision-making has no bearing on the unlawfulness of the parties’ subsequent agreement to maintain a united front with respect to Walmart. In addition, Walmart’s position as the “largest propane exchange tank retailer in the United States” does not protect it from coercion. Even a power buyer like Walmart is vulnerable when its only two suppliers for a product have secretly agreed not to deviate from a proposed price increase. This settlement resolves claims that AmeriGas and Blue Rhino allegedly colluded together to lower the amount of propane in their pre-filled propane tanks from 17 pounds to 15 pounds without also reducing the price, resulting in inflated prices for propane customers.

This subsequent https://coinbreakingnews.info/ to act in concert in negotiations with Walmart is the basis for the Commission’s challenge. We purchased the Gibson tanks directly from its warehouse at 3542 Lamar Ave. since it does not sell its consumer propane through retailers. We bought the Blue Rhino and AmeriGas cylinders from random retailers, including home improvement centers, gas stations and drug stores.

Galphin said consumers should inspect the label wrap around the tank — called the «rust belt — to see if moisture has been trapped inside and caused rusting. He said consumers have the option of removing the label to reduce the risk of rust. Approved cylinders must have triangular valves with «OPD» etched on them. If the valve is either circular or flower-shaped, it is an illegal cylinder.

If the story had ended there, with merely unilateral action and no agreement between AmeriGas and Blue Rhino, there would be no violation of the antitrust laws and the Commission would not have pursued an enforcement action. The proposed orders also allow Respondents to share information with competitors as part of legally supervised due diligence or to participate in a joint venture. However, Respondents are prohibited from sharing highly sensitive information, such as future pricing and marketing plans, with employees whose duties include pricing, sales and marketing of exchange tanks. Further, Respondents are permitted to share confidential information with competitors to respond to health, safety, emergency or regulatory matters. Finally, Respondents can participate in industry-wide data exchange or market research so long as a third party collects the data and only disseminates data that are at least three months old and aggregated from a significant portion of the propane exchange industry. Under the settlements, which were reached in October, Blue Rhino and AmeriGas are barred from agreeing with competitors to modify fill levels or fix the prices of exchange tanks, and from coordinating negotiations with customers.

In particular, the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from the public record. For all of these reasons, I voted in favor of issuing the Complaint and accepting the proposed Consent Agreements in this matter. One of my several concerns at the time the complaint issued was that the Walmart-as-lynchpin theory would effectively collapse into one in which the Commission was challenging the independently decided fill reduction.

The process only requires you to drop off your old tank and pick up a new one. Instead of finding a fresh tank of propane when you need it at your nearest hardware store, gas station, or grocery market, you’ll have to take your tank to a retail location set up for refills, during normally scheduled business hours. When you exchange, check the valve areas for blue or green residue.

Celebrate Earth Day with the clean energy of propane!

Our mission is protecting consumers and competition by preventing anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices through law enforcement, advocacy, and education without unduly burdening legitimate business activity. «The results of our exhaustive review were fully consistent with the principle that consumers who purchase an AmeriGas barbecue cylinder receive everything our company promises to deliver,» he said. «We provide that amount of propane to help control the volatile cost of propane and other materials within our industry,» said Chris Hartley, vice president of marketing for Blue Rhino. But nexAir’s scales showed each of the Blue Rhino and AmeriGas cylinders ranged from 16 pounds to a little as 14 pounds. 1.15 U.S.C. 45 (authorizing the Commission to initiate an enforcement action when it has “reason to believe” a party has engaged in an unfair method of competition).

To avoid this result, AmeriGas and Blue Rhino colluded in their negotiations with Walmart to ensure it quickly accepted the fill reductions. That collusion provides the basis for the Commission’s complaint and proposed Consent Agreements. The Federal Trade Commission (“Commission” or “FTC”) has accepted, subject to final approval, agreements containing proposed consent orders (“Consent Agreements”) resolving an administrative complaint issued by the Commission on March 27, 2014. The FTC accepted a consent agreement from Respondents AmeriGas Partners, L.P., also doing business as AmeriGas Cylinder Exchange, and UGI Corporation (collectively “AmeriGas”) and a separate consent agreement from “Blue Rhino” Respondents Ferrellgas Partners, L.P.

Try as the majority may to fit this case into the per se category of how to fully anonymize kali with tor, whonix & pia vpn and output restrictions among competitors, it simply does not belong in that category. As a result, the cases and other support cited by the majority—including Catalano, Sugar Institute, and commentary addressing agreements on various elements of price—are inapposite. In fact, none of the cases cited by Commissioners Ramirez, Brill, and Wright even remotely resembles the alleged facts in this case. The lack of judicial experience with the unique conduct alleged in this case further counsels against application of the per se rule, as well as any abbreviated rule of reason treatment, for that matter.

Until the ACFR grants it official status, the XML rendition of the daily Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov does not provide legal notice to the public or judicial notice to the courts. Whether you choose to refill or exchange your propane tank, propane is the best way to keep your summer cooking. Propane is an affordable, easy to use, and efficient fuel that excels in backyard barbecues. Propane provides immediate heat and precise temperature control, which gives you the flexibility to prepare a variety of dishes that would be challenging with other outdoor heat sources. Exchanging your propane tank at a Blue Rhino partner is quick and easy and can be done any time of the day. You can hold an impromptu barbecue, and quickly find the propane you need just moments before the grilling begins.

AFAIK, you can exchange them at either place — whichever is more convenient; i.e. you’re not going to be locked into a brand. It’s usually cheaper to just get them refilled if you have that available as an option nearby. Locally, I can get mine refilled at B.J.’s for either $9.99 or $10.99 (I can’t remember which it is), and I can get it refilled at a hardware store for about $14. I have 3 or 4 tanks laying around — if some idiot puts a grill out at the curb with a «free» sign on it and includes the tank, then I get that tank.

The problem I found with that is some of the places have filled only fill it half way. There’s no obvious «full» blinking light that goes off and you are paying a flat rate not by the cubic foot or whatever it is. I’ve gotten tanks home before and using the very inexact weight gauge on my Weber it tells me I have a half full tank and it certainly seems to run out faster. I go to Lowes or someplace like that because I have faith that it’s a tank in decent condition and it’s actually full. It seems like Blue Rhino sells at a lot of gas stations around here, so I’ve been using them more lately. Blue rhino has some bs “proprietary” valve, you can’t refill them.