It's been happening for a few months now. I just hope it hasn't spread to you guys. Because of the gas price being as they are some have resorted to stealing fuel from others. It's a good thing the local police are on top of things, or it'd be very rampant right now. Anyways, I a bit of advice to dish out and hopefully it never happens to you.

1. If you notice your gas guage going down a little faster than usual, check the fuel lines under your vehicle, ESPECIALLY if your vehicle is easy to get under.

2. Check the underside of your fuel tank as well. It's not hard to drill under it and let the fuel drip out.

3. Check to see if your fuel cap has been tampered with. Siphoning gas is probably the oldest way to steal from your neighbors, especially if the vehicle looks like it's been abandoned.

If you're thinking of trying to “drill” or “cut” for your gas like this, DON'T. That gas is contaminated and could ruin your vehicle. There's no way to simply filter the stuff out of the gas.

4. When you're at a gas station with a convenience store, make sure there are gas attendants to pump your gas for you. Failing that, make sure that the fuel is the LAST thing you buy. It's something that's happened to me. I pay for fuel, then go shopping for stuff. A tuner car pulled up alongside mine and pumped out the gas I paid for into THEIR car.

Anyone else got any advice to add to this?

Good advice, Lonnehart. I'd also add…

1. Buy a LOCKING GAS CAP. They are worth the investment of $16-$20.

2. Try to always pay at the pump with a credit card. If you need to shop, just leave your car there. If people are waiting, do the courteous thing and pull into another spot before hand.

Man, I've heard about people drilling into gas tanks. I'm not sure what you could do about that one. Although you are right, people that steal it would get all the sediment at the bottom of the tank.

SpANG
Man, I've heard about people drilling into gas tanks. I'm not sure what you could do about that one. Although you are right, people that steal it would get all the sediment at the bottom of the tank.

Not much you can do if your vehicle rides high enough for people to easily get under it (Sport Utility Vehicles, Big Pickup Trucks). Parking where a lot of people can see your vehicle (such as a very well lit parking spot) can be a deterrent.

This is actually happening? Geez…

5. When your car is not in use, keep it in the garage with the door shut.

People have also been braking into houses and stealing credit cards, and debit cards from purses or wallets they see lying in the open, racking up bills up to 700 bucks to fuel up themselves and their friends. Keep your purses and wallets and cards out of the view of windows and doors.

might as well get a lowrider/ricerocket/exotic sports car to prevent those dudes from going under your car. :P

Anywhoo, I thought cars nowadays have a filter net kinda thing to prevent somebody from sticking a hose down. Didn't people started to steal gas during the last gas drought/price hike.

JoeL_CQB
might as well get a lowrider/ricerocket/exotic sports car to prevent those dudes from going under your car. :P

Anywhoo, I thought cars nowadays have a filter net kinda thing to prevent somebody from sticking a hose down. Didn't people started to steal gas during the last gas drought/price hike.

It was actually put there to keep the fumes from seeping up, but it effectively makes siphoning very, very hard. That's why they're drilling holes, which only gets you sediment unless you're doing it out of a brand-new car or a brand new gas tank (no rust/dust whatsoever on the underside) Good luck there.

#1,200. Only buy your gas in New Jersey where it's 100% full serve and there's always an attendant standing there and it's against the law to pump your own gas.

It's a lot smarter for a thief to drive in, fill up and not pay for it. (Switch nozzles or hit and run) That's why a full-serve attendant ain't supposed to pull out the nozzle until the payment is in hand.

If you work in a station, stealing gas is relatively easy but there will be a papertrail with today's pumps and the like. When the shift was closed out I had to balance the money tendered and gas pumped. Try hiding it from someone with a brain. Fortunately people with brains are relatively rare in fuel distribution. My boss had a brain, so did I, and we caught more than a few cheaters/counterfitters/credit-scams.

bravo1102
#1,200. Only buy your gas in New Jersey where it's 100% full serve and there's always an attendant standing there and it's against the law to pump your own gas…

Oregon as well. But it seems it's getting harder and harder for NJ to hold back that wall. I have a feeling it will happen within a few years.

mechanical_lullaby
People have also been braking into houses and stealing credit cards, and debit cards from purses or wallets they see lying in the open, racking up bills up to 700 bucks to fuel up themselves and their friends. Keep your purses and wallets and cards out of the view of windows and doors.

Yep. Most of the fraudulent charges after our break-in were at local gas stations. (Those “convenient” credit card machines really add to the problem. They could even use the debit cards without needing pin numbers…) :-/ I'll add to this to keep your wallets/purses near or on you at all times. We were home and asleep when our house was robbed. Only my brother and one roommate didn't lose anything. He kept his wallet in his bedroom, and she was still at work.

#1 201: Don't use a car.

Custard Trout
#1 201: Don't use a car.

Agreed. Nobody has ever stolen gas from me. Because you can't steal gas from shoes! :D

Hippie Van

Custard Trout
#1 201: Don't use a car.

Agreed. Nobody has ever stolen gas from me. Because you can't steal gas from shoes! :D

I have no car. I should never have to pay for gas… But, they stole my wallet. -_-

Here in Oz, there are people stealing number plates, putting them on their own car, going to a servo (that's what we call gas stations here), filling up and just driving off!

cartoonprofessor
Here in Oz, there are people stealing number plates, putting them on their own car, going to a servo (that's what we call gas stations here), filling up and just driving off!

Whoa… Never thought that was possible. The pumps here are controlled by a computer inside the store. They don't pump until the gas is paid for. They also require you to give the attendant your drivers license before you “fill up” so that you don't run off without paying.

Lonnehart
Whoa… Never thought that was possible. The pumps here are controlled by a computer inside the store. They don't pump until the gas is paid for. They also require you to give the attendant your drivers license before you “fill up” so that you don't run off without paying.

There's onlty two states to my knowledge that have filling attendants, NJ and OR. Most everyone else just has a clerk inside the store you go pay when you're done. There's no way to enforce payment other than the cameras that watch the cars and get number plates - thus the plate stealing. Also, most modernized gas stations have ‘pay at the pump’ machines where you put in your credit/debit before you fuel, sometimes enter a pin number, and then you can fuel up. But if the card is stolen…

cartoonprofessor
Here in Oz, there are people stealing number plates, putting them on their own car, going to a servo (that's what we call gas stations here), filling up and just driving off!

I've never heard of that… >.>

But then I don't listen to local news anymore :)

Once while my dad was paying for his petrol, the dick at a petrol station accused him of driving off with not paying for it a few days before… Yeah, as if he'd do that and then go back again to the same place and actually pay for the petrol he pumped that time.
The thing was he drove a white Toyota Landcruiser, like about a gazillion other people here.

Just goes to show WHY that guy was working at a petrol station…

“OMG Two white cars in a row, what a crazy a coincidence! God is speaking to me! It's the end of the world! Jebus, I think I crapped my pants!”
—-

No offence to people who work at service stations, that guy was just… setting a bad example.

skoolmunkee
There's onlty two states to my knowledge that have filling attendants, NJ and OR. Most everyone else just has a clerk inside the store you go pay when you're done. There's no way to enforce payment other than the cameras that watch the cars and get number plates - thus the plate stealing. Also, most modernized gas stations have ‘pay at the pump’ machines where you put in your credit/debit before you fuel, sometimes enter a pin number, and then you can fuel up. But if the card is stolen…

Having just one person running the gas station has to be fixed. It'd be all to easy to threaten him at gunpoint for gas. After incidents of fuel theft like the one I was a victim of the local stations have one or two people watching the pumps and to assist the clerk inside. Maybe talking to some congressman might help?

Lonnehart
Having just one person running the gas station has to be fixed. It'd be all to easy to threaten him at gunpoint for gas. After incidents of fuel theft like the one I was a victim of the local stations have one or two people watching the pumps and to assist the clerk inside. Maybe talking to some congressman might help?

Well, it's usually never just one person unless the place is super tiny. But all the workers are indoors behind a counter. Gas stations are frequent victims of robbery.

Threatening someone at gumpoint for gas would be silly. Money you can just run away with, but gas you'd have to stand there filling it, giving ample time for you to be on camera. If someone's going to steal gas they'll just pump and drive away.

It's probably cheaper for gas stations to let gas get stolen a few times a day than to have more employees on staff though. ‘Pump attendant’ doesn't sound appealing or comfortable (or even particularly safe) and I imagine anyone doing that job would want a relatively high wage. You can't have just one pump attendant most of the time either, unless you only have say, 4 pumps.

here in the united kingdom the police are suggesting you park up right next to a wall . . . not a clue why they say that, but you can't even get out if you do that . . .

skoolmunkee

Lonnehart
Having just one person running the gas station has to be fixed. It'd be all to easy to threaten him at gunpoint for gas. After incidents of fuel theft like the one I was a victim of the local stations have one or two people watching the pumps and to assist the clerk inside. Maybe talking to some congressman might help?

Well, it's usually never just one person unless the place is super tiny. But all the workers are indoors behind a counter. Gas stations are frequent victims of robbery.

Threatening someone at gumpoint for gas would be silly. Money you can just run away with, but gas you'd have to stand there filling it, giving ample time for you to be on camera. If someone's going to steal gas they'll just pump and drive away.

It's probably cheaper for gas stations to let gas get stolen a few times a day than to have more employees on staff though. ‘Pump attendant’ doesn't sound appealing or comfortable (or even particularly safe) and I imagine anyone doing that job would want a relatively high wage. You can't have just one pump attendant most of the time either, unless you only have say, 4 pumps.

It is called “petroleum distribution customer service.” You do make more money in the USA than an unarmed security guard. Overnights is where there's the one guy but most theft of gas probably happens at peak hours when the attendant/attendants are busy, busy and looking elsewhere.

Most gas theft I read about takes place in urban areas where there are also car-jackings and people aren't allowed to have guns in their cars. At least that's what the NRA tells us.(Courtesy of my brother the retired army right-wing gun nut)

I imagine it's not a good idea to steal gas from someone with a .38 in their glovebox. At least that's what the NRA tells us with theri numerous stories of defence against crime by an armed citizenry.

I have this bridge in Brooklyn for sale…

bravo1102
I imagine it's not a good idea to steal gas from someone with a .38 in their glovebox. At least that's what the NRA tells us with theri numerous stories of defence against crime by an armed citizenry.

Heh! That something I wonder about too. I put myself in the shoes of the kind of scum that'd rob someone at gunpoint and I realise that if I thought they might have a gun too at all, I'd still rob them, but I'd also very likely shoot them as well because I'd be worried they might shoot me first.
And the more I think people might be armed, the more likely I am to shoot them dead anyway without waiting to see.

And I think that's what tends to happen. A lose/lose situation :(
You still get robbed, but you have a higher chance of getting killed.
-The one most likely to come out alive is the one who has their gun out and ready: the criminal.
You might also scare them off or kill them first, but there's more chance of you not doing that. I mean, there's a reason soldiers don't generally go into battle against armed foes with their guns in glove compartments or concealed under their clothing.
——————-

People will always steel stuff from sellers. But the thing that strikes me most is stealing fuel from parked cars, especially that drilling thing. That's so desperate!

skoolmunkee
There's onlty two states to my knowledge that have filling attendants, NJ and OR. Most everyone else just has a clerk inside the store you go pay when you're done. There's no way to enforce payment other than the cameras that watch the cars and get number plates

Stange! In MS we hae to pay BEFORE we fill up with gas. So nobody can steal your gas because your car is in the way. I didnt even know people were stealing gas!

Crazy!

worstcase
Stange! In MS we hae to pay BEFORE we fill up with gas. So nobody can steal your gas because your car is in the way. I didnt even know people were stealing gas!

Crazy!

That's the case here too. Except in my case I paid for gas first then went to get something else out of impulse. Tuner car drives up alongside mine and pumps out the gas I paid for. The clerk didn't notice what was happening until she saw me inside the store. Too late, the guy got away with the gas I paid for. If not for the security cameras at the pump he would've gotten away with it. Now we have at least one or two attendants outside (even past midnight) to make sure that never happens.

Lonnehart
That's the case here too. Except in my case I paid for gas first then went to get something else out of impulse. Tuner car drives up alongside mine and pumps out the gas I paid for. The clerk didn't notice what was happening until she saw me inside the store. Too late, the guy got away with the gas I paid for. If not for the security cameras at the pump he would've gotten away with it. Now we have at least one or two attendants outside (even past midnight) to make sure that never happens.

I hope that does not happen here! That seems really desperate!

ozoneocean

bravo1102
I imagine it's not a good idea to steal gas from someone with a .38 in their glovebox. At least that's what the NRA tells us with theri numerous stories of defence against crime by an armed citizenry.

Heh! That something I wonder about too. I put myself in the shoes of the kind of scum that'd rob someone at gunpoint and I realise that if I thought they might have a gun too at all, I'd still rob them, but I'd also very likely shoot them as well because I'd be worried they might shoot me first.
And the more I think people might be armed, the more likely I am to shoot them dead anyway without waiting to see.

And I think that's what tends to happen. A lose/lose situation :(
You still get robbed, but you have a higher chance of getting killed.
-The one most likely to come out alive is the one who has their gun out and ready: the criminal.
You might also scare them off or kill them first, but there's more chance of you not doing that. I mean, there's a reason soldiers don't generally go into battle against armed foes with their guns in glove compartments or concealed under their clothing.

Soldiers usually do go into combat with weapons ready, not locked and loaded. Tanks don't go weapons free until the enemy is spotted.

Anyhoo, you'd be surprised how fast they can draw that weapon. Scarred the hell out of me how fast it came out of that handbag and then the glovebox. Even that one campus where unlike Virginia State they had a right to carry law and the gunman was taken out before anyone was killed. (again info courtesy of the NRA except for witnessing the fast draws.) If you get weapon training (civilian too)part of it requires safe and quick draw and return fire. Most criminals don't go to the range and practice. Law-abiding weapon carriers are required to in most states with right-to-carry.

So you get that drill out to steal gas, or be that tuner car and you see a flash of gunmetal or shiny steel… hey, I din't mean it…

According to those that carry (and the NRA natch') the threat is enough.

Do I believe this? No, when I worked in gas station I just had the phone close at hand and Woodbridge's Worst were on stand-by. (very busy state highway near the main State highway) It was NJ. The one time a gun was drawn in defence the drawer was the wrong skin color and the gun was confiscated didn't matter that the other in question had nearly committed vehicular homicide. Woodbridge's Worst didn't even interview the guy who had barely jumped out of the way of an AA pissed off driver with an attitude.

There was only one drive-through gas theft and we got their number and they got caught.

ozoneocean

bravo1102
I imagine it's not a good idea to steal gas from someone with a .38 in their glovebox. At least that's what the NRA tells us with theri numerous stories of defence against crime by an armed citizenry.

Heh! That something I wonder about too. I put myself in the shoes of the kind of scum that'd rob someone at gunpoint and I realise that if I thought they might have a gun too at all, I'd still rob them, but I'd also very likely shoot them as well because I'd be worried they might shoot me first.
And the more I think people might be armed, the more likely I am to shoot them dead anyway without waiting to see.

You'd make a horrible criminal. =P

Why choose to rob armed citizens, if you have a choice of robbing unarmed citizens? I think most normal people will realize that the gas is not worth the possibility of getting shot. If you don't use a silencer, the robbery would be rather loud and might attract attention of other armed citizens! And if you kill someone you'll be in MUCH worse trouble than if you stole some gas, or even robbed someone at gunpoint. The police would search for a killer a lot harder than a robber, right?

Raccoo
Why choose to rob armed citizens, if you have a choice of robbing unarmed citizens?

So you tell the difference with your x-ray eyes do you Superman?

Raccoo
I think most normal people will realize that the gas is not worth the possibility of getting shot. If you don't use a silencer, the robbery would be rather loud and might attract attention of other armed citizens! And if you kill someone you'll be in MUCH worse trouble than if you stole some gas, or even robbed someone at gunpoint. The police would search for a killer a lot harder than a robber, right?

Man, Crime happens regardless. If they're dumb enough to rob you, especially with a gun, they're dumb enough to use it. That sort don't think further than immediate survival. Not “Oh, how will I get away with it?”, More like “Is he going for a gun? Shi!” BAM!

And the discussion had deviated away from theft of petrol to armed robbers in general for that. ;)

I doubt robbing people for petrol at gunpoint is common when money is a lot easier to take away.

worstcase
Stange! In MS we hae to pay BEFORE we fill up with gas. So nobody can steal your gas because your car is in the way. I didnt even know people were stealing gas!

This is a good point, if you have to go in to the clerk to pay, you can go in and pay before you pump gas in most places. If you pay them $50 they can usually tell your pump to stop pumping when it hits $50. I suppose you would just have to be sure to always pay a smaller amount than you would need to fill up your tank though, otherwise you'd have to go back in and try to get the change back, etc. So you'd never have a really full tank.

ozoneocean
So you tell the difference with your x-ray eyes do you Superman?

They didn't call me Clark Kent back in HS for nothing!
I was thinking of places where it's illegal to carry guns. I'm pretty sure a lot of colleges don't allow them.

Man, Crime happens regardless. If they're dumb enough to rob you, especially with a gun, they're dumb enough to use it. That sort don't think further than immediate survival. Not “Oh, how will I get away with it?”, More like “Is he going for a gun? Shi!” BAM!

I agree there, they are pretty dumb.

And the discussion had deviated away from theft of petrol to armed robbers in general for that. ;)

I thought it was a topic on protecting yourself. =P

I doubt robbing people for petrol at gunpoint is common when money is a lot easier to take away.

Aye, people are more likely to try to steal gas when no one is around. Having a gun in the car won't protect it if you aren't around, so I guess it's moot point to this topic anyway.

My car came with one of those lock caps. My previous car had a lever inside it that opened the flap to the gas. I always pay at the pump, gas up my car (most times don't even go into the store). I've only had money, and a couple deer thingies (that make noise) stolen from my cars.