Oil price rises increase heating oil thefts

29 May 2008

Soaring oil prices around the world have caused a sharp rise in the number of heating oil thefts taking place.

Dipstop, based in Shropshire, told the Independent that it has witnessed a 45 per cent rise in sales of anti-theft devices for diesel tanks since the start of the year.

Concerns about 'fuel rustling' are growing in Britain with oil prices up by around 40 per cent since the start of the year.

John Leighton, owner of Dipstop, said: "We are now constantly getting calls from companies and individuals saying they've had their fuel tank broken into and the diesel siphoned off. It is rife. People are pretty disgusted with the rate at which they are losing their fuel."

Domestic heating fuel oil customers are being advised to keep supplies safe in locked tanks wherever possible, as thieves target supplies to feed the black market.

Rising oil prices have caused a spate of thefts in the Outer Hebrides, with thieves targeting islanders' heating oil fuel tanks and more than a dozen thefts reported since January, the Daily Record reports.