"Magistrate" Magazine Article – April 2004

To 'Bilk' – Evade payment of (creditor, bill), cheat, give the slip to.   Earliest use in cribbage – to spoil opponent's score. The Concise Oxford Dictionary

Standing in the dock is a clean shaven, tall, thin, 20-year-old with a smart dark pin-striped suit, white shirt and complementary tie.  He's driven off without paying for his fuel.   Did he forget? Very unlikely – he drove off without paying on ten occasions.  What do you give him?   A £30 fine, order him to pay the service station back and slap him on the wrist? 

Consider again, because it might be that this youngster has stolen the car, he is not the registered keeper, has no current road fund tax, doesn't have any insurance or MOT and could well be involved in more serious crimes.

Magistrates are now being asked to get tough with "Bilkers" - people who intentionally and frequently drive off without paying for fuel.

They not only cost petrol retailers a massive £12m a year in stolen fuel – they are frequently responsible for a wide range of other crimes.

The British Oil Security Syndicate, (BOSS), is leading the campaign for magistrates to be more aware of the wider implications of bilking and sentence accordingly. Formed in 1991 by the oil industry BOSS is steered and funded by the leading petroleum companies. BP, ChevronTexaco, Esso, Jet, Q8, Shell and TotalFinaElf are members. It is supported by the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), the United Kingdom Petroleum Industry Association (UKPIA), the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), the Association of Payment Clearing Services (APACS) and Banknote Watch. BOSS's main aim is to reduce the amount of crime taking place on Britain's service stations.

Kevin Eastwood is executive director of BOSS.   With 30 years experience of the oil sector, Kevin's expertise in the areas of health, safety and security is widely acknowledged throughout the industry.                                                       

 

Under Kevin's leadership BOSS's influence as the retail fuel industry's forecourt security watchdog has grown significantly.                                                                             

He says the organisation has been introducing a range of initiatives to reduce forecourt crime. Now he is calling for magistrates to take a firm stand when dealing with offenders. "Driving off without paying for petrol is an arrestable offence.   We are not talking about the person who momentarily forgets to pay, but drivers who have no intention of paying. BOSS is working very closely with police forces throughout the UK and magistrates are the final and most important link in the process."

 

Previously, a power of arrest in a bilking case was limited to finding the person carrying out the offence.   Had anyone come across the offender, say two hours later, there would have been no power to make an arrest.   Changes in October 2002 to the Police Reform Act, mean there is no longer any time limit.

 

Where a police constable has reasonable grounds for suspecting that an arrestable offence has been committed, he or she may arrest those suspected, without a warrant.

 

Magistrate guidelines suggest penalty level 5 and/or 6 months imprisonment.   Magistrates are asked to consider the seriousness of the offence, including the impact on the victim when sentencing. Aggravating circumstances, such as being a deliberate plan, of high value, two or more people involved and if the victim was particularly vulnerable, should be taken into consideration.

 

In March 2003, Dorset magistrates sentenced a bilker to nine months imprisonment for theft of fuel.   He asked for 36 offences to be taken into consideration.   This was an important judgement for the retail fuel sector and highlighted the seriousness with which this type of offence should be viewed by magistrates.   It also sent a clear message to the would be bilker that forecourt crime will no longer be tolerated.

 

Kevin said: "Bilking can have devastating financial implications for forecourt retailers - the vast majority of whom are independent business people who can be the victim of two or three 'drive offs' a day, costing more than £100.  

 

"But increasingly, evidence shows that those who commit 'bilking' on a regular basis tend to be habitual criminals.   Drive offs are just the visible tip of a far larger crime iceberg.   Often the criminals are driving stolen and probably unregistered vehicles, or using altered number plates.   They will invariably not be taxed, MOT'd or insured.                                            

 

"BOSS wants to deny criminals the use of the highway. Our members already suffer from robbery, violence, credit card fraud and vandalism. But members' top priority is the safety of their staff and customers and we intend to ensure that service stations remain safe places. Crime can often be reduced by as much as 60% with the introduction of a BOSS Forecourt Watch initiative."

 

Forecourt Watch schemes provide an early warning system to keep retailers informed about crimes being committed and provide details of suspects and their vehicles.   When a crime is committed petrol retailers immediately report the

incident to the local police, who quickly transmit warnings about any suspects and their vehicles to all retailers via a dedicated communications system. There are over 40 such schemes in operation and where they are in place service stations have seen a substantial reduction in forecourt crime, particularly drive offs.

 

One such scheme with Thames Valley Police led to a 50% decrease in the number of reported drive offs.   Using Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology car registration numbers are checked against the Police National computer, the DVLA database and local police intelligence databases.   In two days a total of 1,215 cars were checked, 23 of which were identified as being of interest to the police, resulting in three arrests.

 

A similar scheme in Lewisham, south London, led to a 70% reduction in reported crime from service stations.   Following the launch of the scheme the police have made 21 arrests for various offences including possession of drugs, weapons, stolen goods and driving whilst being disqualified. Also, 80 summons   (CLE26s) were issued for not having a current tax disc.   The police also caught a number of people for having counterfeit credit cards.

 

Forecourt Watch in Boston, Lincolnshire, reduced drive offs by more than 64% within six months of being launched. Other offences fell by more than 35% compared to the same period the previous year.

 

Kevin Eastwood says the link is clear: "Bilking is part of wider problem of crime and should be viewed within that context, not just as theft of fuel."

 

Magistrate Peter Simpson is well aware of the impact of bilking on the petrol retail industry.   As Chairman of Simpsons of Swindon, Shell Dealers and motor retailers he has been in the industry for 33 years. He is also deputy chairman of Swindon Magistrate's Court.

                                                                                                                             

He said: "In some parts of the country, particularly busy urban service stations, drive offs are a major headache.

 

"There are many reasons why someone might drive off without paying for their petrol.   They may be preoccupied, or old and forgetful.   I have also heard of couples who were so involved in a domestic row that they drove off unaware that they hadn't paid!   These should be dealt with appropriately.

 

"But there are also a number of drivers who make a habit of driving off without paying.   Frequently, the car will have been stolen, the driver won't have a licence or insurance. They may have been disqualified or may not even have passed their driving test at all.

 

"From the 1 st October 2002 driving off without paying became an arrestable offence. I would ask fellow magistrates not to treat the offence in isolation and treat it more seriously than they might have in the past."

Although figures released by BOSS last year revealed a substantial reduction in the cost of forecourt crime they also showed credit and debit card fraud had risen significantly.

New BOSS forecourt crime figures are due to be released this October and are likely to point to a slight increase in the cost of forecourt crime.

Kevin said: "Our message to criminals should be clear. 'Think twice before you commit a crime on petrol forecourts because you're likely to be caught and dealt with seriously.'"

Peter added: "I hope fellow magistrates will take a fresh look at the way they deal with bilking offences and, taking each case on its own merits, look at the possible wider picture.

"As magistrates we can help to reduce overall crime by looking more closely at how we sentence consistent bilkers who we now know are likely to be involved in more serious crime – think twice when this type of offender is standing in the dock before you - I certainly will."

If you would like further information about the BOSS please contact Kevin Eastwood on 01926 864757

Prepared for BOSS by Broad Communication Consultants

Tel:         01509 843308