Bloody Picky; NO PETROL IF YOU PARK WRONG WAY OR WEAR CAP BECAUSE OF FUEL THEFTS.

Byline: TOM WELLS

PETROL giants BP have launched a bizarre strategy to combat drive-away fuel thieves in the Midlands by introducing a string of forecourt bans.

The huge oil firm has been plagued by motorists who fill up at their pumps, only to roar off without paying.

The scam - known as 'bilking' - happens hundreds of times each week in the Midlands and costs petrol retailers more than pounds 12 million a year nationally.

Now, BP top brass have ordered forecourt staff in Birmingham city centre to refuse to serve customers if they simply park the WRONG way round.

Also banned are drivers who stay in the car and leave passengers to fill up - because cars can then make a high-speed getaway without payment.

Motorists who leave doors open while re-fuelling, also allowing a fast escape, are blacklisted, as are drivers who wear hats or caps which conceal their faces.

Each of the company's petrol stations is bristling with state-of-the-art CCTV cameras to prevent bilking.

Most also now feature automatic number plate recognition systems, which prevent petrol being dispensed before a car's ID is logged.

If drivers fail to comply with the stringent conditions, the fuel pumps are not switched on.

The police-backed scheme is laid out in notices posted on forecourts throughout the city.

They read: 'CUSTOMER NOTICE. Please be warned that failure to pay for your fuel will result in prosecution. State-of-the-art CCTV coverage is in operation on this site.

'This site works very closely with the police to reduce crime. Your fuel pump will not be authorized if:

The driver is still in the car;

The person filling up is wearing a cap or any form of headwear, or is attempting to conceal their appearance (other than religious headwear);

The doors are left open;

Your vehicle is facing away from the shop;

Any other suspicious circumstances.'

The notices are clearly visible at BP petrol stations on the Hagley Road in Quinton and on the Pershore Road in Selly Park.

One motorist said: 'I was really shocked to see so many conditions being laid down before I could fill up. With such a long list, I half-expected it to say that only motorists driving cars of certain colours would be served!

'But I suppose it's just a sign of the times.'

A spokesman for BP said: 'The stations in Birmingham are unfortunately subject to a high rate of drive-offs. In some cases it is done accidentally, in some cases it is deliberate.

'We have posted these notices in stations in the city in an effort to make people know that we are aware of the variety of methods used by criminals who drive off deliberately.

'The scheme, which began last month, is carried out in partnership with Birmingham City Council and West Midlands Police and so far it is operating with a degree of success.'

Ray Holloway, director of the Retail Motor Industry Federation's Fuel Industry, said: 'This move has come from a training package put together by the industry over the years.

'As the cost of petrol has risen, the temptation to drive off without paying has increased but, with better technology, petrol companies are learning to combat it more and more effectively.

'There are still thousands of incidents each week across Britain and the most recent research showed retailers lost pounds 12 million through 'bilking' in 2003.'

CAPTION(S):

FILLING THE PINCH: the BP forecourt on Pershore Road in Birmingham and, below, the rules of filling up