BOSS, the British Oil Security Syndicate, has now recovered more than £2m on behalf of its members through the BOSS Payment Watch scheme, which helps retailers reduce losses from people claiming to have No Means of Payment for fuel taken. Kevin Eastwood, executive director at BOSS, said: "Being able to return in excess of £2m to our members is a significant milestone for BOSS. None of this would have been possible without the help and support of police forces and retailers around the country. It clearly demonstrates that membership of BOSS Payment Watch can make a difference to the bottom line."

The BOSS Payment Watch scheme was first introduced among a trial group of sites in 2011. Since then participation has grown significantly.

BOSS members include the BP company owned network, major groups including MRH, Sewell on the Go and Central England Co-operative, as well as supermarket retailers Morrisons and Tesco. In addition there are numerous Shell multiple-site operators and dealers who are BOSS members, together with hundreds of independent fuel retailers. BOSS member Linda Millar from MRH Warwick Road Services in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, said: "The BOSS Payment Watch scheme has proved very successful and now underpins the way we recover our No Means of Payment debts. We’ve also found that the scheme acts as a deterrent, and it’s clearly led to a reduction in our losses. We’ve worked closely with BOSS to ensure that it works for us and when we include customers’ returning to site and paying within seven days, the recovery rate has jumped."

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