Editor's note: According to the Better Business Bureau, CEO of Mygallons.com, Steve Verona, reported to the Bureau Monday, July 15, that he will be issuing refunds to all customers of Mygallons.com nationwide. Additionally the company will give them a free year of membership once an agreement has been secured with a bank-card processing service.

A Miami-based company this month has taken the unusual step of providing motorists with a hedge against rising gasoline prices.

However, it also has generated major controversy about whether or not the service is a scam.

MyGallons.com is offering drivers the chance to pre-buy gasoline at the current price and fill up later when prices -- presumably -- are higher.

Much of the blame for rising gasoline prices has been attributed to oil speculators who are betting a future barrel of crude will cost even more than it does now.

Drivers have been left at the mercy of such speculators because few can play the futures game and cash in on ever higher oil prices.

Enter MyGallons.com.

Here's how the service is supposed to work: Customers pay an annual membership fee, which is $29.95 or $39.95, depending on the program.

Once they become members, customers buy however many gallons of gas they want at the average price in their region on the day of the purchase. Customers are issued debit cards for the gallons, which they say can be used at about 95 percent of the nation's gas stations.

For example, say you pre-buy 100 gallons at $4.10 a gallon, and next week the price jumps to $4.20. MyGallons.com says you can fill up with their card at the lower price, which is valid no matter how long between the time you loaded the card and when you buy fuel.

When the card gets near empty, you can order more gallons, again at the prevailing daily price in your area at the time of purchase. Text messages or e-mails alert MyGallons.com customers to the daily prevailing gas price for their area.

MyGallons.com can do this and still make money -- aside from collecting membership fees and selling ads on its Web site -- because it plays the hedge game on fuel prices.

However, potential customers should be aware that MyGallons.com has ignited a firestorm of controversy.

Earlier this month, the Better Business Bureau gave MyGallons.com an "F" rating, saying the company was guilty of "a material omission of fact" in its publicity material.

The MyGallons controversy centers around whether or not MyGallons actually had a formal relationship with the Voyager fleet network, a bank-card processing service owned by U.S. Bank.

CEO Steven Verona said he believed he had a contract with Voyager at the time of the MyGallons launch, but acknowledges that the two companies have since parted ways.

Verona is now searching for a replacement processing service and has agreed to suspend accepting new membership fees until a new payment network is in place.

As a result, the South Florida Better Business Bureau has rescinded the "F" rating and replaced it with an "NR" rating. This rating is used when the Bureau "is conducting system maintenance," according to the Bureau Web site.

Even if MyGallons sorts out its payment troubles, risks to members will remain.

Another twist could affect drivers who routinely travel beyond their home region. MyGallons.com calculates the average daily price by region.

If you travel to another state where the average is higher by more than 10 cents a gallon, you pay the difference. (By contrast, if you fill up where the price is 10 cents or more a gallon cheaper than your home rate, you get a credit.)

The company says that you can cash in your unused gallons, but only if the daily rate dips. So if you buy gallons at $4.10 and bail out when gas prices are $3.90, you'll lose 20 cents a gallon.

Finally, you could pre-pay for these gallons and then be left with a worthless debit card if the company goes broke. The company says that it keeps the funds in an escrow account, which is used to pay for the gas when drivers redeem it.

So is it a good deal?

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It depends on what happens with the price of gasoline. If you can lock in today's prices and gasoline jumps to $5 a gallon and above – and MyGallons actually sorts out its payment-network problems -- the deal at MyGallons.com looks pretty sweet. If prices drop and stay down, you're stuck.

Also, when calculating the prices of gasoline from MyGallons.com, take into account the membership fee.

If the first 100 gallons costs $4.10 a gallon, plus $39.95 in fees -- for a total of $449.95 -- the cost per gallon is actually $4.499 a gallon, so gas will have to take a big jump before a driver sees any savings. Buying 500 gallons would still average out to a per-gallon cost of $4.179.

Only those drivers who believe we haven't even come close to the peak in gas prices should consider taking the leap.

Here are this week's reader questions:

• Should I dump my depreciating SUV? • Can I limit my payments to $300 a month? • If I drive infrequently, can I keep my gas hog?

If you have a question for Terry, e-mail him at Driving for Dollars. Save money on your car -- sign up for Bankrate's new weekend Car & Money newsletter.