Petrol thieves who drive off without paying won’t get prosecuted as they may not be ‘having a great day’, police say

Lincolnshire Police have sparked controversy by refusing to prosecute petrol thieves, suggesting they might simply not be “having a great day”.

Superintendent Fran Harrod urged petrol station owners to pursue civil action instead of criminal charges for fuel theft.

The senior officer explained that the force must prove intent to steal and has limited resources to investigate such cases.

“There is an offence of making off without payment. The issue that comes with that particular crime type is whether that is an honest mistake – somebody has filled up, they’re not having a great day and they’ve driven off – or whether it’s not,” said Harrod.

The force has defended its stance by saying that some incidents of “bilking” – the term used for drivers who pump fuel but leave without paying- may involve people who simply forget to pay.

Harrod was responding to concerns about a lack of enforcement after the owner of Empire Garage in Mablethorpe reported 50 fuel thefts in just six months.

Kavita Pilani, who has run the garage with her husband Sanjay for a decade, says this year has been their worst for drive-offs.

Individuals often fill up £80 to £90 worth of petrol before leaving without payment.

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Despite having CCTV footage of suspected offenders and reporting every incident, Pilani says police take no action.

“We are giving them [the police] the proof of the person driving off,” she said.

“They just need to see the CCTV recording and call the people to come and pay.”

Lincolnshire Police insist they are taking the issue seriously, with officers visiting affected garages to provide preventative advice.

The force suggests businesses should use the British Oil Security Syndicate (BOSS) for civil debt recovery instead of criminal prosecution.

Harrod explained this would help businesses recover their money within weeks, rather than expending police resources.

The scale of the problem is significant, with the Petrol Retailers Association reporting that drive-offs cost the industry more than £100million annually.

This amounts to approximately £9,000 per forecourt across the country.

BOSS estimates there are about 1.5 million reports of unpaid fuel every year.

Claire Nichol, executive director at BOSS, attributes the rise in fuel theft to economic pressures.

“This rise in unpaid fuel reports is primarily driven by a significant increase in drive-off incidents, where motorists intentionally leave petrol stations without paying for fuel,” she said.

Rising fuel prices and cost-of-living challenges are pushing some individuals towards theft, according to Nichol.

She added that busy forecourts with limited surveillance make these crimes easier to commit.

“We all know that nowadays unless violence is involved the police tend not to pursue low-value crime and, often treat unpaid fuel reports as a civil matter,” Nichol explained.