All Crime articles – Page 7
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NewsEXCLUSIVE: The five London petrol stations where almost a fifth of the capital’s drive-offs occured
Just five petrol stations played host to 17.91% of all drive-offs reported to police in the capital in 2023. With 523 filling stations in London, on average five forecourts should be responsible for reporting just 1% of fuel thefts.
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NewsDriver with fake number plates steals fuel as police appeal for information
A drive-off at a South Oxfordshire forecourt was facilitated by fake number plates, police have said.
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NewsDigital access to DVLA records granted to forecourt operators and security firms
The cumbersome paper and postal process required for forecourt operators to obtain vehicle-keeper details from the DVLA has come to an end thanks to a new scheme that grants firms digital access to drivers’ records.
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NewsDurham forecourt bans off-road bikes from refuelling
Off-road bikes that are not allowed to be ridden on the road have been banned from being filled up with petrol by a forecourt in Hartlepool, Durham.
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NewsSpending Review 2025: Chancellor announces £2bn additional police funding
Steps to tackle surging crime levels in England and Wales have been announced by Rachel Reeves in the 2025 Spending Review, with an extra £2bn being earmarked for police.
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AnalysisCOMMENT: The UK’s number plate system is broken. Thankfully, there’s a fix
The disorder that surrounds the UK’s number-plate system should be considered a national system failure requiring widespread media attention and immediate government action.
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NewsSurge in fuel theft tracked by operators’ requests to DVLA for driver records
A new investigation into fuel theft has uncovered that forecourt operators put in 49% more requests for motorists’ details to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in between February and April 2025 compared to the same period last year.
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NewsBen Lawrence reduces shoplifting at Sholing with latest loss-prevention tech
Ben Lawrence has all but eliminated shoplifting of higher-value items at his family’s BP-livered forecourt in Southampton, Hampshire, following the installation of a new anti-theft system.
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NewsUK number-plate system “totally out of control” as MP seeks to tackle epidemic of illegal plates
A shocking meeting at Westminster yesterday revealed the true scale of the crisis present in the UK’s number-plate system, which a Labour MP is seeking to tackle by way of a Private Members’ Bill.
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NewsBurglary at Derbyshire petrol station sees cash and alcohol stolen
Police are appealing for information after a filling station in Derby was broken into.
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NewsFuel worth over £400,000 stolen in Northumbria: a drive-off case study
Detailed analysis of drive-off data from Northumbria Police exemplifies the nationwide issue of motorists making off with fuel without paying, with thieves knowing that police take no action in the vast majority of cases.
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NewsForecourt Trader reaches millions with drive-off message in media
Forecourt Trader’s investigation into the epidemic of drive-offs is being covered extensively in the national media, putting the spotlight on an often overlooked problem for thousands of petrol stations.
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News£20k of cash stolen from Shropshire petrol station
Police are appealing for information following a break-in at a forecourt in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, that saw £20,000 of cash stolen.
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NewsGreggs puts sandwiches and drinks behind the counter to combat shoplifting
It was a tactic once reserved for strong medications, spirits, tobacco and lottery products, but bakery firm Greggs is now placing sandwiches and soft drinks behind the till to combat rising crime levels.
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NewsMasked football hooligans throw lit flare around Scottish forecourt
A group of around 25 masked youths rampaged across a forecourt in Newmains, North Lanarkshire, lighting a flare before throwing it into the site’s shop.
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NewsCar-wash boss banned from being a company director over illegal workers
The owner of a Suffolk hand car wash has been banned from being a company director for seven years after Immigration Enforcement officers found he had employed four people with no right to work in the UK.
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NewsForecourt knife robber gets six-year prison sentence
A thief who held up two petrol stations at knifepoint has been sentenced to six years in custody.
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AnalysisCOMMENT: Stop fuelling crime – police must rethink how they approach drive-offs
It was only a few months ago that a senior officer from Lincolnshire Police said people driving off from petrol stations without paying for fuel may not be “having a great day”. Given such crimes almost always go unsolved, that attitude may be prevalent amongst other high-ranking officers.
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NewsEXCLUSIVE: £6.5m of fuel stolen in drive-offs as up to 94% of offenders escape justice
Forecourt Trader has discovered that fuel worth an estimated £6.5 million has been stolen in the past five years in over 131,000 drive-off incidents from petrol stations, with police ending investigations with no suspect being identified in up to 94% of cases, despite senior officers linking such offences to organised crime.
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NewsPolice appeal for information following Harrogate forecourt theft
Officers from North Yorkshire Police have asked members of the public to come forward with information about a suspect following a theft from a Harrogate petrol station.