While most people see high gas prices as serious problem, marketing gurus see them as an opportunity. It's almost impossible to turn on the TV, get gas or go shopping now without hearing about some great new way to cut down your gas bill. Many of these offers may sound tempting, but beware the fine print booby traps.

Topping the list of gas discount offers is Chrysler's $2.99-per-gallon promotion. But credit card companies, rental car firms and even local tourism boards all are making similar pitches. All of them should be taken with a grain of salt, or maybe taken with one of those little pills you drop in your gas tank to improve your gas mileage (kidding!).

Chrysler's deal is perhaps the most tempting. The car seller promises the security of $2.99-per-gallon gasoline for the next three years. In a world where pump prices have gone mad, heading now towards $5 in some place, $2.99 gas seems like a great deal.

But hold onto your gas hoses. Chrysler's offer has many nuances, but it boils down to this: Most new car buyers are familiar with the choice they often get between a cash rebate or low-rate financing ($3,000 cash back or a 0 percent loan, for example). Well, the discounted gas is simply a third choice. In other words, those who take the gas offer surrender all or part of their rebate and access to the cheap loan.

I like to keep things simple, so the standard advice applies here: for the majority of car buyers, your best bet is to take the rebate. Cold, hard cash is simple.

The truth is, even with $5 a gallon street prices, given the limitation of 12,000 miles worth of gas per year, Chrysler's $2.99 offer is pretty close to a wash when you surrender the rebate. Obviously, the specifics can vary wildly, but for argument's sake, here's a scenario -- at 20 mpg, Chrysler would discount 600 gallons of gas per year, saving a buyer $600 if the street price is $3.99, and $1,800 over three years. Is that worth surrendering a $1,500 rebate, which could add $1,500 and the associated finance charges to your car loan? Probably not. In some cases, Chrysler will let buyers who take the gas offer keep part of the rebate, which complicates the math further, but you get the idea.

Of course, you can imagine a scenario where Chrysler's deal leaves you ahead -- say, if pump prices explode towards $10 a gallon. There are other ways that the $2.99 gas card might pencil out for you -- say if you plan to buy a gas-guzzling diesel truck, for example. The folks at Consumer Reports have performed painstaking math on your behalf. You can see their efforts here and decide for yourself if you want to play gas price roulette with Chrysler.

But even if gas prices rise to $7 or $8 a gallon, and you save a bundle on gas for three years, you still might end up losing in the end, says Jeff Bartlett, auto expert at Consumer Reports.

"After three years, where are you going to end up? With two disappointing scenarios. Either you go back to paying full price for gas, or you say, 'I bought a gas guzzler, how am I going to sell that?' " The resale value of low-mpg cars is sure to plummet as gas prices rise, he said, so it's important for the consumer consider the total cost of ownership -- including resale value -- when considering any sales incentive.

Credit card gas discounts

If you think the Chrysler discounted gas deal is confusing, check out credit cards that discount gasoline prices. Without looking too hard, you can find offers that sound too generous to be true -- 10 percent off a gallon of gas, for example. Again, the higher the price goes, the better these deal sound. I don't mean to burst your bubble, but here goes.

First off, these cards do not lower the price of gas, despite the clever marketing campaigns. They provide rebates. And those rebates are slow in coming. Many cards only provide them once each year, in the form of a credit on the credit card bill. The credit might seem like a generous amount, but if you sign up for one of these cards at a nearby gas station seeking relief from high pump prices, you will wait a long time for that relief.

But that's only the beginning of the booby traps to be found on gas discount cards. Most cards offer a teaser discount rate, which then drops down to a much lower rate after a couple of months. For example: The Citi Dividend Platinum Select Card offers 5 percent off gas for 6 months, and then 2 percent off after that. Some card's teaser rates vanish in as little as two months.

Then there's this: Some cards limit the rebates you can earn each month or each year. With the Citi card, for example, the annual limit is $300. There's also a minimum purchase required -- drivers who don't earn at least $50 in credits get no rebate at all.

Despite all those restrictions (and we've omitted plenty of others), Bill Hardekopf of LowCards.com says consumers can get a worthwhile deal with gas rebate cards if they carefully dissect the terms and conditions before signing up.

"You can make some pretty good money on a rebate card but you have to really know what you are doing," he said. For example, the BP Visa Rewards Card offers sizable rebates of 5 percent -- but only for gas purchased at BP, of course. The card might make sense if you frequent a BP station around the corner, but it certainly wouldn't make sense for consumers to go out of their way to buy BP gas.

"We recommend making yourself a grid. Include the introductory offer, the ongoing offer, if there's a cap, and so on, to make it easy to compare," he said.

Here are two places to compare gas discount credit cards: LowCards.com and CardRatings.com.

Of course, the most important thing to remember with all rebate cards is this: if you don't pay your balance in full each month, you lose. Few consumers plan to carry a balance, but about half ultimately do, so it's important to be realistic about your ability to avoid finance charges if you sign up for a gas card. If you carry a balance on any other card, you probably don't need any more plastic in your wallet. And remember that applying for multiple credit cards within a few months will likely hurt your credit score, a penalty that could be far more costly than an annual $300 rebate for gasoline purchases.

Other gas deals

The tourism industry is filled with trepidation about the summer travel season, with many families scaling back driving plans. As a result there are genuine incentives that are worth checking out. You can find rental car offers than include a free tank of gas, for example, which could be worth $50-$100. But watch out. Don't let the rental car firm talk you into a gas guzzler (rental car lots are full of underused SUVs right now), which could eat away at your discount. And make sure to price rental cars using other traditional discounts, such as an AAA card. You might get a better deal by forgoing the free gas and taking a better price.

Meanwhile, car renters are also offering discounted gas if you prepay at the time of renting. That deal is only worthwhile if you are clever about returning the rental car with a nearly-empty tank.

Local tourism boards also are nervous and are trying to attract travelers who might be making other plans. Some car-oriented destinations are offering gift cards to tourists who book their trips. Here's a series of offers from the New Hampshire tourism board, for instance.

Some hotels and travel sites like Expedia are also offering gas gift cards as an incentive for booking travel. These deals are pretty straightforward.

Finally, even grocery stores are getting into the act, offering discounted gas to loyalty card holders. Kroger's Co. offers 10 cents off per gallon after shoppers spend $100 at the store. Nothing against FDR, but one thin dime is hardly worth changing your gas buying habits for.

Penny wise and pump foolish

That brings me to my final point. Consumers tend to be very price sensitive, and marketers are keenly aware of this. But while trying to chase down lower gas prices, many drivers are penny-wise and pump foolish.

A survey conducted in 2007 by petroleum retailers found that one in four car owners said they'd drive 10 minutes out of their way to save 3 cents per gallon. That makes no sense. Taking that extra trip saves a driver 36 cents on an average 12-gallon fill up, but it costs about $3. Assuming the driver averages 45 mph, getting to that magical discount gas station will end up requiring a 15-mile detour, round trip. Assuming the car gets 20 miles to a gallon, and the price of gas is $4, the extra trip costs $3, or nearly 10 times the amount saved!

And so it is with gas discounts. Despite the high price of gas, consumers who try to chase a few extra pennies should be aware they might end up being led by the nose into a money-losing deal.

Here's a comprehensive list of other gas-saving deals.

Have you found any gasoline discount deals that really work for you? Share them here.

I hope you're sitting down while you read this. One of America's largest rental car companies is about to eliminate one of the vacation industry's most notorious hidden fees. And I'm about to lavish it with praise.

Hertz last week announced it would stop charging car renters an arm and a leg for gasoline when they return rental cars with half-full tanks. You know the drill: When you rent the car, you're given a Russian-Roulette kind of choice: 1) paying up front for gas, thereby paying for more than you will use; 2) agreeing to fill the tank yourself and running the risk that you will be too late to do it; or 3) paying for the rental firm to refill the car after you drop it off. Those after-rent gas prices have been ludicrously high for years, generally about double the street price for a gallon of gas. Currently, Hertz refuel prices are about $8 per gallon in many locations, making travelers liable for surprise fill-up charges of $100 or more.

But beginning July 1, that will change at Hertz. Renters will instead pay fair market value for gas plus a $6.99 fee for the refueling service. That will end one of biggest hassles that travelers face -- the desperate search for a gas station near the airport while trying to leave enough time to check in and clear airport security checkpoints.

Hurray for Hertz, which as the world's largest consumer rental firm has the power to steer the industry in the right direction. Consumers should consider renting from the firm, even if its rates are slightly higher, because they won't be on the hook for the refueling "gotcha" any longer. That's a valuable feature. It will be interesting to see if the company actually benefits from doing the right thing. I hope so.

The move is not entirely born of largesse. Earlier this month, the Maryland state attorney general forced all rental car firms in the state to substantially lower their refueling penalties. In Maryland, rental firms must now limit their refueling price to about 140 percent of the prevailing market price. The agreement lowered the per-gallon gas charge at most firms from $8 down to a little less than $6.

"As a result of these agreements, Maryland will have among the lowest, if not the lowest, rental vehicle refueling charges in the nation," Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler said while making the announcement. It's good to see that state enforcement agencies can recognize eggregious practices and force change. It's too bad Maryland or some other state didn't take the same tack a few decades ago, but better late than never.

Skyrocketing fuel prices helped draw attention to rental car companies' crazed pricing practices. When gas was $1.40, $2.80 refueling prices didn't seem quite so bad, but $8-per-gallon prices are indefensible.

"Car rental companies realize that motorists have had it with gas prices, and they are running out of patience," said Catherine Rossi, spokeswoman for the American Automobile Association's Mid-Atlantic office. "We are pleased that the Maryland attorney general's office addressed this with the car rental companies and we hope other attorneys general will follow suit."

Hertz deal even better
But Hertz has gone farther than Maryland required, offering a better price and extending the deal to the rest of the country. The firm claims its new pricing plan has nothing to do with the threat of legal action in Maryland. Even if that's a fib, I don't care. Hertz has seen the light. Now let's see if other rental car firms are forced to play nice. So far, Hertz's top competitors haven't extended their new, low refueling prices outside of Maryland.

"We're taking a close look at it, but do not have a decision to announce at this time," said John Barrows, vice president of communications at Avis Budget Group.

Here's a case where the light hand of government intervention could really help a market function properly. Let's say Avis, Budget, and other competitors stick to their guns and continue with crazy refueling prices. Hertz will obviously lose money on this deal, and be put at a competitive disadvantage. It will likely raise prices slightly to cover the revenue lost through the new policy. That means consumers who search for rental cars at travel sites like Expedia or Orbitz might be tricked into renting a car at a slightly lower up-front price, but one that comes with the risk of a high penalty fee at the end of the rental. As a result Hertz's competitors will rank higher in search engines that sort by price. That's unfair to Hertz, when its ultimate rental price might be cheaper.

It would be better for Hertz, and I would argue better for the entire industry, to have state attorneys general from all around the country, or the Federal Trade Commission, step in and say, "$8 gas prices are obviously unfair, and this practice must end." Enforcement of a simple rule that's already in many state lawbooks, which says that penalty charges must be aligned with actual costs incurred by the company, would suffice. And it would create a level playing field.

Perhaps that will happen on its own. Perhaps consumers will react so positively to Hertz's new policy that other car renters will have to imitate it. We'll have to wait and see.

Red Tape Wrestling Tips
*It's important to note that it will still be cheaper for you in most cases to fill the tank yourself than to let Hertz do it for you. Hertz's fair pricing simply provides a nice insurance policy if you are running late to the airport. One other note from Hertz's announcement: The firm is also offering small discounts to those who buy their gas up front when renting a car -- 15 cents per gallon off prevailing market price. That deal sounds tempting, and it might be convenient for business travelers, but those who pre-pay for a full tank usually lose because renters cannot return the car with an empty tank. Whatever's left in the tank is free gas for the rental car firm.

*Other rental car companies are also offering pre-paid gas discounts too. In some cases, these discounts might make sense -- those with large SUVs planning on car vacations might be better off renting a small car with this cheaper rental car gas. An excellent comparison chart can be seen at SmartMoney.com.

*In the meantime, Hertz and other rental car companies are capitalizing on consumers' fixation with gas prices and offering various "free gas" deals. At Hertz, for example, renters booking a minimum of three days can get a free tank of gas at some locations. Look for similar deals from other renters.

Whenever mom gave you money as a child, she probably issued this simple, sage advice: "Don't spend it all in one place." Now that government stimulus checks are arriving in mailboxes around the country, major retailers are trying to rewrite mom's advice.

You should stick with mom.

Many stores are making an offer that sounds pretty good -- turn your government refund into a gift card at our store and we'll add 10 percent to the balance. For example, take a $300 check into any Sears and you can walk out with a $330 Sears gift card.

Meanwhile, Wal-Mart is offering free Visa-branded bank cards -- which can be used anywhere -- to consumers who load them with stimulus checks, waiving an $8.94 "card-issuance fee." Other fees, however, remain in force, so giving all your money to Wal-Mart is a bad idea, too.

With all these stimulus checks floating around the country -- $110 billion worth -- it should come as no surprise that retailers have concocted creative ways to get their hands on them. While electronic deposit payments arrived in May, paper checks will continue to be issued through July. Many of these 10 percent offers require presentation of the paper refund check.

But the usual advice about gift cards applies here: Cash is almost always better.

Destined for the sock drawer?

Getting the 10 percent bump in gift card value might seem attractive, but you can bet the retailer who gets your money will come out ahead. In fact, that 10 percent is carefully calculated: researcher RK Hammer says 10 percent of all gift card value goes unspent. Meanwhile, last year, Consumer Reports said that 27 percent of consumers have an unused gift card lying around somewhere in a sock drawer. So don't mistake the offer as generosity. And in the meantime, you've ignored mom!

"The big drawback is you have to use all that stimulus money at that retailer," said Michelle Jun, a staff attorney at Consumers Union. "And you may end up leaving a balance on your card."

There are other drawbacks, too. People who do use gift cards tend to spend more than the value of the card when they shop -- something that's called "lift" in the retail industry. Consumers generally overspend by 30 to 60 percent, said Tina Henson, CEO of Plastic Jungle, a gift card exchange site.

In other words, retailers win either way.

Another unanticipated risk: Retailer bankruptcy

But there is another way you can lose, and lose big: If the retailer who gets your stimulus money declares bankruptcy. To a bankruptcy court, a gift card is an unsecured debt; that means the plastic can become worthless overnight. This rather stunning fate happened recently to consumers holding Sharper Image cards, and last year, to those holding Bombay cards.

The story of Sharper Image cards is quite tortured. After initially declaring the cards unusable, a bankruptcy judge later allowed the store to accept the cards under this crazy condition: Consumers would have to buy something worth at least twice the value of the card in order to use it.

The bottom line is this: Consumers who hold gift cards are running more risk than they realize.

There is an exception to this otherwise party-pooper advice on stimulus checks and gift cards. If you already plan to buy one big-ticket item at a store making such an offer, it does make sense to use a stimulus check offer as an instant 10 percent coupon. But to be safe, get the gift card and turn around and buy what you want the same day. That way, you won't forget about it, lose it or risk a surprise bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, anyone who is tempted to give a stimulus check to Wal-Mart and get a bank card in return should really find another way to cash the check. The cardholder agreement for the Wal-Mart MoneyCard lists 13 different fees. Stimulus check users are exempt from only one. They'll still have to pay a $4.94 "monthly maintenance fee," a $1.95 ATM transaction fee, 75 cents to check their balance at an ATM and $2 to call an operator and ask for help.

Letting Wal-Mart nickel and dime you isn't going to help stimulate the economy! Just keep the cash. It'll be much easier to follow mom's advice that way.

For a fairly comprehensive list of stimulus check offers, you can visit this Web site.

More on the perils of gift cards can be found at the Consumers Union Web site.