Fuel station workers report abuse has more than doubled
REPORTS of abuse incidents against forecourt staff have more than doubled since the outbreak of the war in Iran, according to new data from VARS Technology.
The retail security firm has found that there has been a 115% increase in the number of reported incidents across forecourts since the beginning of March as prices at the pumps spiked upwards after the outbreak of the US-Israeli war in Iran.
Figures were compiled from forecourt customers who use VARS Technology’s facial recognition system that compared the first two weeks of March to the last two weeks of February.
The company found a staggering 115% increase in the number of incidents of aggressive or anti-social behaviour, or incidents where customers damaged shop fittings or stock. In comparison, VARS reported that levels of aggressive behaviour across non-forecourt retail locations that use the firm’s facial recognition tech did not increase during the time period showing a clear link, and threat, for forecourt locations in particular.
Despite the rising number of violent incidents across forecourts, VARS noted that reports of theft or attempted theft remained consistent across the two time periods.
Prior to the two weeks at the beginning of March, VARS said that most reports of violence were linked to failed theft attempts where individuals were identified and challenged. Instead, during this time period in March, most reports of aggressive or threatening behaviour towards forecourt staff were standalone and not linked to attempted theft.
VARS Technology works with over 1,500 forecourt locations across the UK, providing protection to staff members by alerting them to problem vehicles as soon as they arrive on the forecourt.
Additionally, the firm works alongside retailers to help recover costs of stolen fuel on their behalf. The firm was recently granted special accreditation with the DVLA to help perform digital requests with the government body to help speed up this process.
John Garnett, director of VARS Technology, said: “The rise in fuel prices has had a far bigger impact on the way people treat forecourt staff than it has on levels of fuel theft, which has only risen a small percentage on the sites we work with.
“Anyone working in the industry understands that forecourt operators aren’t profiteering or price gouging and instead are doing their best to minimise price rises for customers. However, that message isn’t coming through from Government, and these figures clearly show the impact this is having on forecourt workers just trying to do their job.”
