Shropshire Star

Shropshire petrol stations pay heavy price for fuel thefts

Only 19 convictions were brought against more than 100 drivers who fled Shropshire petrol stations without paying, new figures have revealed.

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A Freedom of Information request made by the Shropshire Star showed that between January 1, 2012, and January 1, 2013, 102 drivers attempted to escape petrol forecourts without paying, an average of two a week.

Of those 102 offences, 12 were settled with a community resolution, four people had the crime taken into consideration with other charges and two people were charged.

Police were unable to confirm the punishment behind one of the convictions.

A West Mercia Police spokesman said: "During the period in question there were around 250 reports of people making off without payment from petrol stations in Shropshire.

"The large majority of these were found to be genuine errors where there was no intent to commit an offence and payment was made soon after.

"However, 102 incidents were recorded as crimes and to date, 19 of these have been resolved with sanctions taken against those involved.

"We work very closely with our partners, using such means as CCTV, in attempting to identify offenders."

The spokesman added: "Anyone who makes off without payment will ultimately face the prospect of having a criminal record.

"And they could end up being charged and put before the courts."

Independent garage owners across Shropshire said they did what they could to stop people from driving away.

David Smith, who runs Nix Service Station, in Forton Road, Newport, said: "When it does happen it does cost us a lot of money because the profit margin on fuel is so low.

"If you drive off with petrol worth £50 you have got to sell 2,000 litres just to cover the cost.

"It only happened a couple of times in 2012 but we do have very good CCTV cameras and we do not sanction the pumps for people we deem suspicious.

"When it does happen though people should be prosecuted because it is theft."

Graham Wylde, owner of Shawbury Service Station, added: "I have had a good run recently but it was quite a common thing a few years ago.

"You would almost think it would be worse in the current economic climate.

"What we have had recently is people come in after filling up and then claiming they don't have their wallet.

"They leave their name and address but we never hear from them again.

"A lot of people seem to escape paying that way. Sadly it's a thing you have to accept in the garage trade."

A spokesman for BP said: "Drive offs continue to be a problem.

"BP works closely with the police to identify offenders through the use of sophisticated CCTV cameras and Automatic Number Plate Recognition systems.

"These initiatives have helped to reduce losses."

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