Victoria Police want the fuel industry to consider adopting a pre-pay system in light of a sharp jump in petrol theft.
Reported petrol theft drive-offs increased to 5078 in the past 12 months, a rise of almost 18 per cent according to police figures.
Police admit the problem is stretching its resources and it was only able to solve one in five cases.
Inspector Michael Glowaski said pre-paid petrol was not the “panacea” to the problem and wanted the fuel industry to help find a solution.
“We’re not in a position that we can come up with solutions for the industry,” he said.
“We’re asking the industry to come up with their own solutions.”
He said police could not force the industry to introduce a pre-paid petrol system or other strategies, but believes it’s in the industry’s best interest to take up the challenge.
“With some responsible mitigation strategies we should be able to completely eradicate the offence of petrol theft,” he said.
He admitted initial talks with the industry had a mixed response.
“Some parts of the industry indicate it’s not going to be a popular decision,” he said.
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