UK forecourts lose £194,000 of fuel daily as prices surge

Fuel thefts have surged across the United Kingdom amid steeply rising fuel prices tied to the ongoing Iran oil crisis, with an estimated £194,000 worth of petrol and diesel being stolen from forecourts every day. New analysis from the fuel theft prevention firm Forecourt Eye reveals a 20 percent increase in incidents of fuel taken without payment in the five months following the conflict's start on February 28, 2026, compared with the preceding period. The escalating pump prices mean the value of stolen fuel has jumped 48 percent over the same timeframe.

The figures, based on reports from a representative sample of 550 forecourts, cover both "drive-offs," where no attempt to pay is made, and "no means of payment" incidents, where customers claim an inability to settle their bill. A notable trend shows first-time offenders accounting for a 23 percent rise in incidents and a 26 percent increase in the volume stolen. This outpaces increases among repeat offenders, who saw rises of 17 and 20 percent respectively. The price pressure is stark: as of August 1, the average price of a litre of petrol reached 160p, a three-and-a-half year high and about 27p more than before the conflict....