Thursday 30 June 2022 01:45 AM Fuel prices drive up forecourt thefts as incidents of motorists driving away ... trends now
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Fuel thefts at forecourts have surged by up to 61 per cent as drivers struggle to afford spiralling pump prices.
Industry bosses revealed the worrying trend yesterday, with about 50,000 ‘drive-offs’ and ‘no means to pay’ incidents happening monthly across the UK.
Petrol hit 191.24p a litre on Tuesday, the latest 24-hour period figures are available for. Diesel also rose to 199.01p from 198.96p, not far off the all-time high of 199.10 set last week Pictured: BP Petrol station at Reading Services this week
The average value of each fuel theft has surged from £53.28 to £78.19.
Gordon Balmer, boss of the Petrol Retailers Association, which represents about two-thirds of forecourts, said that it could cost the industry £25 million a year.
He said ‘drive-offs’ – where a motorist fills up and makes no attempt to pay – and people being unable to pay had collectively surged 61 per cent this year compared with the same period last year. He said: ‘In terms of fuel thefts, it’s going through the roof.
‘We also then have “no means to pay” incidents, when somebody fills up and then they say they have left their wallet or purse at home and can’t pay. That comes in at about another £16 million.
He said police refuse to deal with the incidents valued at less than £100.
Average petrol pump prices have hit another record despite
