Beware of fuel selling scam, says Simpson Transport boss
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By Laura Hailstone NICK SIMPSON, director of Scarborough haulier Simpson Transport, is warning operators and their drivers to be aware of a possible fuel selling scam.
Last month, a Simpson driver refuelled a Sprinter van at an independent service garage just off the M1. He put in around 50 litres of diesel, but the cashier gave him a slip for 70 litres to sign for. On questioning the amount, the cashier swiftly took £21 from the till and placed it in the driver’s hand.
“I’ve spoken with our fuel card supplier, and apparently it’s a wellknown and frequent scam,” says Simpson. “It works best with larger vehicles as they can generate a decent chunk without it showing a bigger dent in the overall spend. “The reason it was obvious to our driver is that a Sprinter tank holds around 75 litres, and our guys are asked to never go below a quarter of a tank to avoid running too low. Hence 60 litres is usually their maximum ill, so 75 litres rang alarm bells.
“The cashier picked too small a vehicle for the scam to work, but he was also too quick to provide the refund – there was no calculation required, indicating that it wasn’t the irst time this had happened,” adds Simpson.
A spokesman at UK Fuel Cards tells CM it is “investigating the incident” .
● Have you been a victim of this type of fraud? Let us know at laura. hailstone@roadtransport.com