Fuel theft is one of the major problems faced by Australia. This crime has been escalating since the pandemic. The fact that the petrol price has risen significantly is considered one of the reasons behind this activity. This scary activity had commenced in 2002 in North-South Wales. The police department has ensured to tell the audience about it being a crime. However, people have continued to remain ignored. In most theft cases, the accused has no intention of paying the amount. Instead, he/she is willing to rush away the moment the tank is filled.
Fuel thieves are following every possible trick to avoid being apprehended. One such trick is removing number plates from the vehicle and stealing someone else’s transport. This thievery is affecting petrol pump stations. Petrol pump stations are losing around $5 million dollars a year. The accused are confident about not getting caught, as they are riding a vehicle. Police are utilizing CCTV camera and facial recognition feature to capture the accused.
Common Ways to reduce Fuel Theft
- Let people know about the difficulties they will face from the thieves: Creating awareness among people is one way to educate them. One needs to tell them about the measures taken to prevent thievery, including parking vehicles in a secure place. Also, make sure that they have locked fuel caps.
- Self-security measures: Installing a security camera, building a robust fence, and lightening the area can protect one from fuel thieves.
- Fuel sensors and multi-siphoning devices: Installing fuel sensors on vehicles can alarm a person the moment one touches the fuel cap. Also, if you are working, then you will receive emails on your registered device.
- Take a walk around your yard: Monitor your yard, as most of the thieves will scope the yard during the day and plan to attempt thievery later at night. One can use public display signals, to appear vigilant.
Collaboration to Prevent Thievery
SenSen Networks ltd, a sensor AI data enterprise, has been provided with a contract to come with solutions for fuel theft. The contract is between SenSen and EG group Australia. Both the companies are aiming to assist around 50 of EG’s retail locations. To enable the service, the work will be beginning from January 2022. Upon successful completion, the collaboration will expand EG’s geographic reach. EG is serving Australia since 2019. The company is responsible for operating about 6,000 fuel and convenience stores across Europe, US, and Australia. As per sources, SenSen has tested its technology with EG’s CCTV service and has succeeded to enable the technology.
SenSen’s award-winning technology will prevent fuel thefts along with saving $60 million. The company completed the Scancam acquisition in July 2021 and then spent five months integrating Scancam’s existing technology onto SenSen’s AI platform, SenDISA. The innovative technology will improvise the cameras, which as a result will implement the scalable, reliable, and easy solution. The upgradation will be beneficial for the large outlets along with the independent service station owners. The independent owners are responsible for about 40% of the market and cannot afford the implementation of advanced technology. SenSen is utilizing the existing cameras and increasing the working efficiency along with reducing time and cost. The innovative solution will cover around 6500 service stations along with the other critical issues.
Read more: Equinix introduces a New Data Centre in Australia
