Petrol theft in New South Wales has risen to its highest level in a decade, with tens of thousands of motorists driving off and not paying for fuel.
New data from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research revealed 11,673 drivers filled up their tanks and then fled from the petrol station in the year to June 2023.
The worst month was in March when 1,272 incidents were reported. In the same period, police charged close to 1,300 people with petrol theft, according to The Daily Telegraph.
These incidents occurred at a time when petrol was about $1.80 per litre.
However the cost for fuel in the Harbour City has surged since June, with petrol prices in recent weeks fluctuating in the high $1.90 mark up to $2.29 in some areas.
According to the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, the top five local government areas for petrol theft were Blacktown (927), Canterbury-Bankstown (713), Central Coast (617), Parramatta (514) and closely followed by Penrith (475).
Lake Macquarie (402), Newcastle (400), Cumberland (375), Fairfield (310) and Liverpool (300) rounded out the top ten for the state.
Police have warned they will continue to crack down on the theft of fuel, working with petrol station operators who have witnessed repeat offending.
“Times are financially tough for many people, but we want to remind the community failing to pay for fuel is an offence that police take seriously,” NSW Police Robbery and Serious Crime Squad Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi told the Telegraph.
But there is some relief on the way, with the price of fuel expected to slowly fall about seven cents a barrel and eight cents a litre.
Further south in Victoria, there were 4,109 recorded drive-offs from petrol stations in the year to March, according to data from the Crime Statistics Agency.
It equates to about $21 million worth of fuel each year.
Businesses have reported a spike in fuel theft linked to the rise in cost of living.
An owner of 28 petrol stations in Geelong claimed he lost close to $10,000 in 2023 so far.
Nationwide an estimated $85 million of petrol is stolen annually.
(Sky News)
