'Fill up and flee' is on the rise

16 April 2014 - 02:02 By Nivashni Nair
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Petrol pump. File photo
Petrol pump. File photo
Image: Nicolene Olcker

Motorists are resorting to crime to fill their tanks.

Drive-offs, currently at "epidemic levels" in the United Kingdom and Australia, have spiked in South Africa after more fuel price hikes this year.

Over the past few weeks petrol station owners throughout the country have reported incidents where motorists refuel their vehicle's tanks and drive off without paying .

"It is a national problem. It is happening all over and it is on the increase. It started last year and is gradually increasing," Fuel Retailers Association (FRA) CEO Reggie Sibiya said.

A Durban petrol station owner said his garage was hit twice a week over the past month.

"Understandably motorists have been hit hard by the petrol price but stealing is a crime. We have a situation now where our staff have to be extra vigilant and treat every motorist as a potential petrol thief," he said.

A Johannesburg fuel retailer said several motorists fled without paying after distracting petrol attendants with requests for oil.

In many cases if the petrol attendant is found to have been negligent or to have colluded with the driver, the stolen amount is recovered from his salary. 

Blue security managing director Darryn le Grange said the Durban private security company received petrol theft reports every week.

“In two of the recent incidents last week the driver of a green Toyota Corolla filled with fuel at a garage in Mayville and fled without paying, while the driver of a white Toyota Quantum filled up with R800 fuel and fled from an Umbilo garage without paying,” Le Grange said

In other incidents, bakkie and BMW drivers drove away with stolen fuel in broad daylight.

Most drive-offs occur early in the morning or after 6pm.

Sibiya said the only solution was for motorists to pay before their vehicles are refuelled.

"We really have to get used to upfront payment. There is no law that says you cannot pay for fuel upfront. That’s the best way," he said.

Several petrol stations throughout the country have been demanding upfront payment after pursuits to nab the thieves proved fruitless.

"Even if you have CCTV cameras, which all stations have , the car sometimes has false number plates. When you report the car to police, it cannot be traced. It really is a mission to locate the criminal," Sibiya said.

Le Grange said many garage owners in Durban invested in pumps that enable petrol attendants to siphon petrol out of tanks to deal with motorists who claim to have forgotten their bank cards or cash at home.

Sibiya was aware of the pumps. However, he said it did little to curb drive-offs because the motorist would be "long gone" before the petrol attendant could even reach for it. 

He said the number of drive-offs was pushed up by banking technology failures resulting in fuel retailers losing thousands of Rands each year.

"You fill your tank and swipe your card. You get a SMS confirming that your bank account has been debited but there has been a failure in communication between your bank and the owner's bank. An error comes up on the terminal but you say it is impossible because you received a SMS. The bank won't pick it up immediately so when you phone them you still say your account has been debited and leave. The owner does not get paid," he explained.

Sibiya said the FRA has been working with the banking industry for the past 18 months to find a solution.

"But nothing is happening".

Australia's Herald Sun yesterday reported that petrol stations in the Melborne West were hit three times a day.

In January alone, police laid 262 charges in relation to petrol thefts with one woman being charged with 127 offences including theft of petrol and numberplates.

The British Petrol Retailers Association last year said fuel theft was at an "epidemic level" as the number of incidents doubled since 2012.

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