Gas Stations Sanctioned in Quintana Roo for Shortchanging Customers

Quintana Roo, Mexico — The Federal Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco) has immobilized 20 fuel dispensers at gas stations in Quintana Roo due to measurement failures or lack of documentation. In some cases, it was detected that stations were dispensing quantities less than what consumers paid for, according to Iván Escalante Ruiz, head of Profeco.

During the “People’s Conference” on Monday, the official stated that in an extraordinary operation carried out on December 16 and 17, 2025, Profeco and the Agency for Safety, Energy and Environment (ASEA) nationwide, including in Quintana Roo, verified 12 service stations in municipalities such as Tulum, Playa del Carmen, and Benito Juárez.

The detected anomalies led to the filing of complaints with the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic (FGR), although the official did not specify the addresses of the offending gas stations.

Before President Claudia Sheinbaum, the official detailed that the operation included visits to hundreds of gas stations in different states, with 43 complaints filed with the FGR for stations that were not dispensing complete liters and 161 temporary closures imposed by ASEA for non-compliance with environmental regulations within the context of the “National Strategy to Promote Gasoline Price Stabilization.”

In addition to the closures and sanctions for irregularities in dispensing and environmental regulations, Quintana Roo is among the states where less than 60% of gas stations complied with the agreed price cap of 24 pesos per liter during a past verification period. This highlighted the discrepancy in compliance with the national price stabilization strategy, according to Crispín Alarcón from the organization Mexico in Defense of the Consumer.

Quintana Roo and other southeastern states continue to have gasoline prices above 24 pesos per liter, attributed to the logistical costs of transporting fuel, admitted the head of Profeco. This is despite the agreement signed by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum with business leaders.

On social media, one person exposed that on the island of Cozumel, the 5 Pemex franchises are selling regular magna gasoline at 25.25 and 25.75 pesos, “robbing the Cozumel people and there are no authorities doing anything.”

“They say it went down, but here we keep paying the same or more. Every week it goes up by cents and it never really goes down,” said Rafael Tun, a transportation platform operator, who claims to spend up to 3,000 pesos weekly on fuel.

According to Profeco, the average price of regular gasoline in the southeastern region went from 24.99 to 24.18 pesos, a reduction of just 3.2 percent, insufficient against the daily impact on workers, transporters, and small merchants.