Fuelled up thieves: Petrol drive-offs ‘out of control’ in Melbourne

PETROL thieves are raiding Victorian outlets an average 500 times a day in a drive-off epidemic, the industry claims.

A motorist fills up at a service station in Sydney, Jul 04, 2005. picJack/Atley /Bloomberg /News bowser pump petrol fuel generic hand

PETROL thieves are raiding Victorian outlets an average 500 times a day in a drive-off epidemic, the industry claims.

The Australasian Convenience and Petroleum Marketers Association says the “out of control” drive-offs have almost tripled in two years.

It is calling for a new fuel theft fine to pay for numberplate recognition cameras at outlets that don’t have surveillance.

“If a new motor offence was created, then administrative resources in the state’s police force could issue what amounts to traffic infringement notices, with all revenue collected used to fund the cameras and annual operating costs,” ACAPMA chief Mark McKenzie said.

“These cameras would ideally be monitored by police.”

ACAPMA believes a camera rollout would cost about $20 million.

Victoria’s 1455 service stations suffered an average 11 drive-offs each a month, up from an average four per site two years ago, according to estimates to be submitted to a state parliamentary committee investigation.

The industry blames a Victoria Police policy, publicly stated in 2013, to only investigate when there was clear evidence of criminality such as a stolen vehicle.

Recorded crime statistics with Victoria Police show 2957 petrol thefts for the period April 2014 to March 2015.

Mr McKenzie said the estimates were far higher than official police figures as most owners believed it was pointless to report theft.

“While ACAPMA accepts that the allocation of scarce police resources to more serious matters such as domestic violence and other heinous crimes is more important, ignoring the growing problem of fuel theft is not a solution,” Mr McKenzie said.

“Average losses suffered by the many small to medium businesses that comprise the fuel retail industry have risen to $600 per site per month at a cost of $10.4 million a year.

“Placing the burden on businesses to chase down motorists that have stolen fuel through the courts as a civil matter ultimately puts upward pressure on fuel prices.”

Authorities have previously urged outlets to take greater crime prevention measures.

Police have denied turning a blind eye to fuel theft.

The Law Reform, Road and Community Safety Committee’s petrol drive-off inquiry will report back by December.

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@KarenCollierHS