8 January 2002
Conference To Help Manage Forecourt Crime

Every year Britain's 15,000 petrol stations lose over £11 million through motorists driving off without paying.

They also lose £19 million in credit card fraud, £8 million in criminal damage and £7 million in robbery and assaults on staff.

It all adds to a £50 million crime bill.

Now, the British Oil Security Syndicate (BOSS) is joining forces with Thames Valley Police to help petrol retailers to manage crime more effectively.

A free, one day conference "Forecourt Crime: Managing the problem", sponsored by Witness Digital CCTV Recording and Arciris, who are working to develop technology solutions to combat crime, will examine the security hotspots from the criminal's angle, as well as from the police and retailer's perspective.

Speakers investigate case studies where crime has successfully been reduced, and suggest a broad range of options open to the petrol retailer to reduce forecourt crime. The conference is aimed at petrol retailers and their managers.

Retailers will also be shown proven strategies to suit all budget levels - from simple crime prevention ideas to the application of modern technology.

Tom Sterling, BOSS regional co-ordinator for the south-east said: "Forecourt crime is costing petrol retailers dearly, in terms of staff assaults, time and money. By bringing together the detailed knowledge the police have about the crime perpetrators and the expertise of the security companies we can learn what makes our forecourts vulnerable and the steps we can take to reduce this crime rate. There is much we can learn from each other.”

Steve Avil of Thames Valley Police added: "The Police can not tackle forecourt crime alone. There must be co-operation between police, BOSS and petrol retailers. Where these partnerships have been formed it has had a significant impact in reducing forecourt crime. This conference offers delegates an excellent opportunity to find out how forecourt crime can be effectively tackled."

The "Forecourt crime: Managing the problem" conference takes place on 31 January 2002 at the Metropolitan Police Service Training School in Hendon between 10.30 am and 3.30pm. There will be an open forum discussion for retailers to share their 'best- practice' experiences.

BOSS was formed in 1991 by the oil industry and is supported by the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), Home Office Crime Reduction College and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). BP, Esso, Jet, Q8, Shell, ChevronTexaco and TotalFinaElf are all member companies. The aim of the organisation is to reduce the amount of crime taking place on Britain's petrol forecourts.

For further information, please contact:
Sarah Scott
Arciris
Tel: 01392 445325
Tom Sterling
Tel: 0208 325 0232
BOSS

Issued by:Broad Communication Consultants
Tel: 01509 843308