Royal Farms Sued Over Air Pumps

BALTIMORE — A class-action lawsuit was filed in Baltimore City Circuit Court against Royal Farms' parent company, Two Farms Inc., claiming the convenience store operator must provide at least one free air pump at all locations in the city.

In response, Royal Farms said it has been offering free air since April and hopes to have it available at all 16 of its gas stations within Baltimore city limits by the end of this year. The retailer now offers free air at four Baltimore locations, Royal Farms Marketing Manager Ed Stronski told The Daily Record.

A little-known Baltimore law requires all gas stations in the city to provide at least one free air pump.

Despite Royal Farms rolling out free air to all its Baltimore locations, Stacie Dubnow, Towson, Md.-based attorney for the class-action plaintiffs, is seeking reimbursement for all Royal Farms customers who paid for air during the past 12 years.

"I'm accustomed to paying for air, but it only seems appropriate it should be free," Dubnow told The Associated Press. "It's air for goodness sake."

Dubnow told the news outlet Baltimore is the only jurisdiction in which she is aware of a law requiring free air pumps, but her firm is investigating it. 

Baltimore-based Royal Farms operates 160 convenience stores and gas stations in Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and Pennsylvania.