Odd Laws Still on the Books
Pumping your own gas, the motorcycle exception and the latch on the nozzle: real Oregon sections
Lists of strange state laws get passed around with no section number attached. Every one below has one, read from the Oregon Revised Statutes.
Who handles this in Oregon: legal aid programs, lawyer referral and the state offices, listed in the Oregon directory.
| The law | What it says |
|---|---|
| The lawPumping your own gas | What it saysA station may not set aside more pumps for self service than it keeps for attended service, must have at least one person giving attended service, and must charge the same price at both. |
| The lawSelf service only while staffed | What it saysA station may let customers pump only during hours when an owner, operator or employee is there to pump gas. |
| The lawRural counties | What it saysIn the rural counties the section lists, a station may let customers pump with no one on duty, though a station with a store must have someone available to pump after 6 a.m. and before 6 p.m. |
| The lawMotorcycles | What it saysA motorcyclist may always fill the motorcycle's own tank, whether or not the station offers self service. |
| The lawThe latch on the nozzle | What it saysA hands free nozzle is allowed only if it is an approved automatic nozzle that shuts off when the tank is full or the nozzle falls out. |
The rural counties are named in the section itself. Many laws that sound strange are city or county ordinances rather than state law; this page covers only the Revised Statutes. A question about a particular station goes to the State Fire Marshal.
Sources for this section (3)
- ORS 480.332 — Fuel dispensing devices
- ORS 480.341 — Customer operation of gasoline dispensing device in rural Oregon
- ORS 480.340 — Automatic shut-off devices regulated
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Oregon attorney.