It’s an old trick, but the gas and dash method still works. Many gas station customers drive off without paying the bill.
“We average around eight drive-offs a week,” said Sarah Wright, a manager of the Citgo on Sancus Boulevard. “We lose between $300 to $400 per month.”
The station has a bad reputation due to its previous manager who didn’t report most of the incidents, Wright said.
In addition to the cameras positioned outside to observe suspicious activity, the station started implementing new measures to catch potential thieves.
“We are using binoculars to get license plate numbers,” Wright said.
Getting the make, model, and license plate number is crucial to give a valid report, said Sherry Mercurio from the Columbus Division of Police.
On campus, other preventive methods are being used.
“We use pre-pay after dark,” said Nicholas Glaze, a manager at the Exxon at the intersection of Neil and Lane avenues.
“It’s much more common for people not to come in and pay,” Mercurio said. “Making people pay before they pump cuts back on the potential to steal gas.”
Once the theft is reported to the police, not much can be done.
“We have to balance manpower,” Mercurio said. “Crime is opportunity. These people are doing this at 3 a.m. when no one is around.”
Even when a positive identification is made, the majority of these situation are handed internally by the gas stations themselves, Mercurio said. The gas stations usually don’t press charges and allow a 24-hour window for confessions. They just want their money back.
When asked if the majority of these thieves are caught, Glaze gave a disheartening response.
“Not really – every once in a while we’ll get lucky,” he said.
Sometimes the incidents turn out to be common mistakes.
“Most of the people don’t know how to pump their own gas,” said Nick Foley, a clerk at the Exxon station.
For the real thefts, most gas station employees don’t try to stop the thief.
“People aren’t going to risk their lives over 10 or 20 bucks,” Wright said.
