Visiting gas stations that distribute gifts
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh. This questioner asks: What is the ruling on going to gas stations and oil change service shops that offer gifts, unlike others? For example, if you fill up with thirty riyals of gasoline, you get a box of tissues for free.
Answer:
Buy a box of tissues and be done with the trouble. Buy a box of tissues for half a riyal or a riyal and be done with the trouble. You go to the station, which might be a kilometer or two away, and you spend more on gasoline than the price of the tissues.
These are all superstitions and advertisements, and they also harm people, because those who do not put up these advertisements do not get the customers, so the other stations are harmed, and this causes harm to the people. These are matters that must be abandoned. If they had abandoned it and people had not gone to them or encouraged them, they would have left this practice. But you go to them for the tissues, and the second person goes, and the third goes, encouraging them in this practice. Yes.
This is prohibited because it falls under gambling, as it is one of the competitions and prizes that are not permissible, for it involves consuming people's wealth unjustly. This is from one aspect. The second aspect is that it harms others, namely the owners of other shops, by drawing people away from them. Otherwise, would they not be forced to do the same as you? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade intercepting travelers, and he forbade selling to the resident on behalf of the nomad, because of the harm this causes to the people of the market. The purpose is that the influx of goods should be shared among the people of the market, so that one person does not monopolize it, buying it and taking it without them, or one person going to them and saying, "I will sell to you, you do not know the market, I will sell to you." This is not permissible because it harms the people of the market. So this is like the one who sets up prizes; it is like the one who intercepts travelers and like the one who harms the people of the market. In addition to what it contains of consuming wealth unjustly and competitions that are part of gambling and maysir (gambling). Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you,
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh. This questioner asks: What is the ruling on going to gas stations and oil change service shops that offer gifts, unlike others? For example, if you fill up with thirty riyals of gasoline, you get a box of tissues for free.
Answer:
Buy a box of tissues and be done with the trouble. Buy a box of tissues for half a riyal or a riyal and be done with the trouble. You go to the station, which might be a kilometer or two away, and you spend more on gasoline than the price of the tissues.
These are all superstitions and advertisements, and they also harm people, because those who do not put up these advertisements do not get the customers, so the other stations are harmed, and this causes harm to the people. These are matters that must be abandoned. If they had abandoned it and people had not gone to them or encouraged them, they would have left this practice. But you go to them for the tissues, and the second person goes, and the third goes, encouraging them in this practice. Yes.
This is prohibited because it falls under gambling, as it is one of the competitions and prizes that are not permissible, for it involves consuming people's wealth unjustly. This is from one aspect. The second aspect is that it harms others, namely the owners of other shops, by drawing people away from them. Otherwise, would they not be forced to do the same as you? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade intercepting travelers, and he forbade selling to the resident on behalf of the nomad, because of the harm this causes to the people of the market. The purpose is that the influx of goods should be shared among the people of the market, so that one person does not monopolize it, buying it and taking it without them, or one person going to them and saying, "I will sell to you, you do not know the market, I will sell to you." This is not permissible because it harms the people of the market. So this is like the one who sets up prizes; it is like the one who intercepts travelers and like the one who harms the people of the market. In addition to what it contains of consuming wealth unjustly and competitions that are part of gambling and maysir (gambling). Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you,
Source
75-اللقاء الأسبوعي مع الشيخ صالح الفوزان - 11 — archive.org (39:57)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.