The following is a guest post by Kevin of CreditShout, a personal finance blog dedicated to educating people about how to beat the card companies at their own game and save money with credit cards.
Coined as one of the largest oil spills in the history of the continental United States, the BP oil spill is one travesty that seems to worsen more and more every single day.
Eleven workers perished on that rig situated in the middle of the gulf peninsula, and yet BP still manages to sell gas to the everyday Joe at outrageous prices. The oil is currently impacting one of the most prominent ecosystems in the northern hemisphere and yet Americans feel as if their hands are tied when it comes to taking cognitive action.
This is that moment in history where carpe diem reigns supreme, and the power is in the hands of the consumer. Like the popular 80s rock song says “we own the night!”
so take advantage of it! There are many things that you can do to let the big shots BP know that you are serious about change and proactive about making it happen.
Some of you have probably already considered boycotting BP. We decided to explore a few ways that allow you to make an impact on the company financially, as a consumer.
Use a Different Gas Company
Who says that you have to pledge your allegiance to a company that cares less about the environment or worker safety? One of the main things that you could do is seek
gas from other providers. There are so many gas companies that would be glad to have your business – from Shell to Texaco and everything in between, you can seek out new ground in gas. If it is performance that you are worried about then put your concerns to rest, because BP gas was not the supreme gas for cars on the go anyways.
Switch Your Credit Card
By switching your credit card, there is no way that BP can profit off of you or this travesty. You can switch from BP to Exxon or even eradicate the gas card altogether and opt for a regular credit card. If one person represents 10,000 people, can you imagine the strength in numbers and what would inevitably happen if people by the thousands began switching their gas cards from BP to somewhere else?
There is a catch however, in the end you are really forced to make a choice between the lesser of two evils and one of the oil companies is still going to be getting a kickback from your hard earned money.
Use Cash
With all the public and political rage over the oil spill forcing BP’s Tony Hayward to step down, the sky is the limit as to what your voice can do in times like this. It was the public outcry over the spill that inspired Hayward to step down. This is probably a better option than switching to another station specific credit card. By using cash to make your transaction at other gas companies you can rest assured in the fact that the big oil companies will not get a percentage of your transaction as a kickback.
Spread the word
History can only be history when knowledge is passed from one person to the next. It preserves the legacy of integrity of those individuals who made a difference. Not since the Exxon-Valdez oil spill has an event caused this much of an uproar. People are taking a stand and they are determined to make the big oil company pay for the damage that was caused by the spill. By telling people what you know about the oil spill and what they can do to be proactive to change, you are inevitably making a difference.
Choosing a New Card Wisely
If you decide to boycott BP with your credit card, you might consider choosing a gas card that will give you cash back as well as rewards at the pump and isn’t affiliated with a specific oil company. The Discover Open Road card gives you double cash back bonuses with no annual fee. So you can win at the pump by getting double cash back while boycotting an oil company that has caused
a lot of turmoil in a short period of time.
I'm a 24 year old dude that studied finance in school and now wants to make it fun. Over the past three years I've been helping readers like YOU make more money and keep more cash in your pocket. I've appeared live on Fox Business News and I've been mentioned in the NY Times.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Really? You think any of those will have any impact on them? If their oil is not purchased from BP branded stations then the oil will be sent over to the next gas station. They are not completely independent. Gasoline will get used if it is produced, just might come from a different pump. You will hurt the local owner of that gas station quite a bit but not BP as a corporation. Sure change off a BP branded card but I know very few people that use those. Then your sudden anti-credit card use cash or use regular cards is completely off subject and not targeting them.
So we are asking the company to pay to clean up and take care of everyone and everything that is happening (which I am ok with) then say that you refuse to let them make the money to do so? How do you expect them to pay everything off? If they are cut off then our gov’t will have to start paying for all the extra efforts directly from our pockets.
By all means boycott BP if you feel so moved. But when you do, consider this: is the CEO going to feel any pain from it? Or is the guy at the BP on the corner going to lose his job, because he has the misfortune to be working for a company that had an accident? Who are you really hurting and who are you really helping with your boycott? Just think about it.
I agree with Lisa. Many of the BP gas stations in our area are franchisees (not sure if that’s how they’re structured everywhere…). They’re just entrepreneurs who took a risk and bought into the brand and are now paying for the mistakes of their company leaders and/or drilling crews.
I’m not saying BP shouldn’t be punished…but it’s not as simple of a financial assault as it may seem on the surface. You may be hurting your local economy more than you think.
I agree with almost everything other than a pure BP gasoline boycott. Please research the gas stations you are boycotting, as BP doesn’t actually have anything to do with some stations that say BP on them…they sold out to individual owners and you’re just hurting them.
Let me start off by saying that the idea behind this article was to cover the options available for those who want to boycott the company. Some options will obviously have a different effect than others, which is why I tried to explore multiple options for those looking to make a difference by using their wallet. Obviously we are all frustrated the response, some more so then others.
Although boycotting BP completely may not be a popular choice and comes with collateral damage I simply don’t buy the argument that the people at the top won’t feel it regardless of if the franchises take a hit or not. I’m not saying that this is right or wrong, I’m just saying that people in numbers WILL have a financial effect on the company. If there are no franchises buying your gas because they jumped ship, you are in serious trouble.
@philip if you actually took a minute to look at the companies financials you would notice that the company is sitting on a serious mound of cash (oil exploration is unbelievably expensive) and will be able to cover the cost of the clean up regardless of what happens going forward. Furthermore, $20 billion has already been placed by BP in an escrow fund which they no longer have control over.
While I’m glad the oil spill is making people re-examine their choices, I’m hesitant to call a boycott a good idea.
Every oil company has spilled oil and hurt the environment. Switching to Exxon is laughable – the oil they spilled 20 years ago is still being cleaned up.
If you’re going to boycott BP, then you need to boycott EVERY corporation that sells petroleum.