Let's say you were filling up your vehicle at a gas station and you suspected the pump didn’t give you the correct amount of gas, do you know whom to call to investigate this problem? What about this next situation. You go to your favorite deli and get a pound of hamburger and when you get home you discovered something must be wrong with the scales at the grocery store as your purchase sure didn’t feel like a pound. For both of these problems you would call your nearest Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and speak with the folks in the Office of Weights and Measures. They have about 38 inspectors state wide whose job is to make sure that there's 16 ounces in that pound of hamburger you just bought and a full gallon in the gas you pumped. The Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) administers consumer and environmental protection laws and regulations designed to maintain the integrity of transactions between buyers and sellers and prevent unfair competition among regulated industries.
OWM activities include inspection and testing of all commercially used weighing and measuring equipment and the investigation of related complaints; sampling of motor fuels; licensing of individuals to certify the accuracy of weight tickets; and the administration of several laws that seek to ensure the prompt accounting and payment for products sold by Virginia producers. In the Shenandoah Valley, the nearest weights and measures office is at the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services building at 261 Mt. Clinton Pike in Harrisonburg Va Phone: (540) 209-9145.
Regional Offices
Northern Virginia
261 Mt. Clinton Pike
Harrisonburg, VA 22820
Phone 540.209.9145
Fax 540.432.1357
Southside/Tidewater
1100 Armory Drive, Apt. 120
Franklin, VA 23851-2418
Phone 757.562.6637
Fax 757.562.6104
Southwest Virginia
250 Cassell Road
Wytheville, VA 24382
Phone 276.228.5501
Fax 276.228.6579
In the picture below, note the green and white decal indicating that the pump was inspected and passed by the office of weights and measures.
See link at bottom of this article for a small video on pump inspections.
Click on link below to see video Virginia inspectors take a measure of how goods are measured By Dave Ress
http://www.dailypress.com/business/dp-nws-evg-weights-20141226-story.html
