Scott Hannah says fuel thieves have targeted several of his trucks since the surge
in diesel prices. (ABC News: Abby Haberecht)
“If they have a 20-litre jerry can or a 40 [litre] or a thousand [litre], they just take whatever they can get out of the trucks,” he said.
Three trucks from Hannah’s Haulage had fuel siphoned within the past month – two in New South Wales and one in Brisbane. Mr Hannah said most thefts happened when his drivers were parked on the side of the road for the night.
“A lot of the time the drivers are in the truck asleep,” he said.
Some truck drivers discovered their fuel had been siphoned in two incidents in New South Wales and one
in Brisbane. (ABC News: Abby Haberecht)
The trucks have been set up with 24-hour cameras, but Mr Hannah said CCTV could only do so much.
“The trouble with the camera is that people turn up … with a balaclava or dark clothes on,” he said.
“All you can see is [unidentified] people take it.”
Scott Hannah with a fuel cap that’s been smashed into, despite having anti-siphoning technology inside it. (Supplied)
Mr Hannah said his drivers were cautious about where they parked when they travelled across NSW and interstate.
“It upsets you, but there’s not much we can do about it,” he said.
“Some people are good people, some aren’t.”
NSW Police Detective Acting Inspector Andrew McLean said that, with the current price of fuel, “we are seeing an increase in reported thefts”.
“There is a whole range [of cases] that are being reported, from things like road works to construction sites,” he said.
Leo Potros has repaired almost a dozen tanks over the past month. He says he has never experienced anything
like it in his 23 years in theindustry. (ABC News: Rachel Holdsworth)
Mechanics in Western Sydney are seeing more customers with damaged trucks that have been broken into and their fuel siphoned.
Leo Potros, owner of Leo’s Truck and Trailer Repairs in Wetherill Park, said it was increasingly common.
“I’ve been in this industry for 23 years, and I haven’t seen stuff like this before,” he said.
Mr Potros said his staff kept recovering vehicles on the side of the road.
“We just did one last night … customer went to start the vehicle, tried to go to his work … someone broke into his vehicle and siphoned all of his fuel.”
He has repaired more than 10 fuel tanks over the past month, costing customers thousands of dollars.
“Because of the after-hours [call] … the time and the distance, it cost them around $2,000,” Mr Potros said.
He said customers were putting in place “extreme” measures like locks on fuel tanks and extra cameras on trucks, but thieves were finding their way around them.
Dimitri Chrisis, director of Clean My DPF, a company that cleans diesel particulate filters (DPF) in vehicles, said high fuel prices were causing headaches for many Australians.
Dimitri Chrisis says he knows plenty of drivers who have pulled their trucks off the road due to
skyrocketing costs. (ABC News: Rachel Holdsworth)
“Trucks are costing extra thousands of dollars to fill up … to run food up and down the coast,” Mr Chrisis said.
Article Source: https://www.abc.net.au
