The Metropolitan Police has teamed up with forecourt security and crime reduction campaigner the British Oil Security Syndicate (BOSS) to roll out a Forecourt Watch scheme across eight London boroughs.
Following the success of a scheme in Tower Hamlets which was established two years ago and which has recorded a 50pc reduction in crime, Forecourt Watch has been established in Brent, Ealing, Barking and Dagenham, Newham, Bromley and most recently, Greenwich and Croydon. Hillingdon and Lambeth are expected to become members later this year.
What they say
PC Ruari Robertson, Pan-London Forecourt Crime Reduction Adviser for the Metropolitan Police says: "In 2003, over 32,000 people drove away from the capital’s 700 forecourts, having committed various criminal offences and costing the industry millions of pounds. We now have 145 forecourts signed up to Forecourt Watch across eight boroughs and this sends a very clear message to would-be criminals – London is not the place to commit forecourt crime. Sophisticated systems are in place to allow forecourts to communicate with each other concerning incidents or suspicious incidences and each borough has a dedicated police officer to co-ordinate investigations and crime prevention."
BOSS points to some prompt results. For example, in the first month of the new Forecourt Watch scheme in Greenwich, a repeat offender was convicted and sentenced to five months in prison for theft of petrol and driving while disqualified. The Forecourt Watch systems can include:
ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) systems positioned at service stations identify ‘vehicles of interest’ via a centralised computer system which is regularly updated, allowing the police to track vehicles and investigate.
Self reporting packs – for consistency, forecourt staff are trained to complete details of all offences as soon as they occur, including descriptions of suspects and car registration details. These are then submitted to police with copies of any CCTV tapes containing vital evidence.
A protocol for dealing with incidents where a customer claims to have ‘no means of payment’ – leading to fast recovery of monies owed and identifying multiple offenders.
Kevin Eastwood, Executive Director, BOSS (British Oil Security Syndicate), the forecourt security and crime prevention organisation behind the nationwide Forecourt Watch scheme comments: "We are delighted to see the introduction of the new Forecourt Watch schemes across more London boroughs. The scheme at Tower Hamlets, like many others across the UK, has a proven track record for crime reduction and we look forward to expanding the success with these latest additions."
