His next target - where they buy their doughnuts.

[edible_hat]

Had an idiot pull a drive off today...

This sports car pulled up at the row of pumps furthest away from the window. While filling up, the driver looked around furtively, and had sunglasses and a hat pulled down low to cover his face. Mental alarm bells started ringing, so I wrote down the number plate and a reasonable description of car and driver.

Sure enough, he fills up, hops in the car, and tears off at top speed. This being my first drive off at this store, I ask the manager what to do. He calls the cops.

Two officers arrive within 3 minutes. My statement form is filled in and ready to go, so that saved me the trouble of faxing it. They check out the CCTV footage (which confirms my statement of the car and driver's appearance) and put out an APB. All within 10 minutes of the drive-off.

Tomorrow I'll find out what happens next.

(The local police get a discount for our car wash. When we call them, they seem to arrive faster than the average call out time for non-urgent cases.)

[ThePhoneGoddess]

Oooo, baby. bet he won't be pulling that crap again!

Arresting officer: "You ripped off our FAVORITE GAS STATION?!"

[Andara Bledin]

Ooh. I definitely want an update, if there should be one.

Good job on spotting his oh-so-subtle behavior.

^-.-^

[blas]

That was your very first driveoff?

I'm so proud of your ability to see a shady character like that! It took me several driveoffs. Not everyone wore sunglasses or hats or purposely pumped on the furthest away pumps.

Kudos to you! He won't be doing it again anytime soon

And yes, if your gas station is good to the police, they will be more than good to you. Anytime any of us called the cops, they'd be there in less than 5 minutes.

[Racket_Man]

at least the cops showed up and like you station. sometimes it was like pulling teeth at the station I used to work at. they somethimes treated us clerks like we were not doing our job or being lazy or stupid. and we were just using them as our collection agency. but the cops FORGOT ONE THING a drive-off is STILL THEFT and according to Wisconsin state law you can loose your DL for driving off without paying. I guess that I could go into Bestbuy or someother store and rip off something for $30 and get away with it according to their logic. Oh the clerk or LP was stupid or lazy so I can get off scott free

usually after getting a call from the cops payment was shift in most but not all cases. I know there are a few from when I was still there that have gone to criminal court

I still have a LOT of CCTV photos in my Yahoo account of drive-offs and we did not have all that many (once a week or so) ande I got to where I could tell fairly accuractly when someone was going to pull a drive-off. other stations in our group had at elast 1 or 2 a day plus a lot of in-store theft (right down the block from a large high school/.

[blas]

That's sad and pathetic, RacketMan. And yes, it is Wisconsin law. Every pump at every gas station around here states so "Drive off and you lose your license" or something like that.

If they don't wanna deal with the piddly shit (aka driveoffs), then they shouldn't be cops. But hey, I'm sure the FBI will be hiring eventually.

[myswtghst]

I mentioned this in another thread, but I'm still proud of my brother for this. He was up the street from my place before coming to visit me, filling up his car at my *favorite* local gas station. Someone drove off and made enough of a fuss that my brother noted the license plate, and was able to give it to the poor clerk when he paid.

[edible_hat]

That was your very first driveoff?

My first one at the job I've been working at for 2 weeks. Around 3 years ago I quit working at service stations because at the time I was working night shift and studying during the day (which lead to permanent jetlag), for the last year of that I was at a prepay-only site so it's the first drive-off I've had in around 4 years.

at least the cops showed up and like you station. sometimes it was like pulling teeth at the station I used to work at. they somethimes treated us clerks like we were not doing our job or being lazy or stupid. and we were just using them as our collection agency.

Yeah, two of the sites I used to work at were like that. The cops from one station wouldn't even take a report unless you have another witness.



A follow-up - the car was stolen, probably destined for a chop shop. The cops have the CCTV tape and the guy in it matches a suspect in a bunch of other crimes.

edited to add: One thing's changed in the last 4 years - the drive-off statement form now includes a checkbox marked "I declare nobody has my permission to leave the site without paying for the fuel or merchandise they take". Obviously some thieving scumbag won a court case with "He didn't say I had to pay!"

[IT Grunt]

edited to add: One thing's changed in the last 4 years - the drive-off statement form now includes a checkbox marked "I declare nobody has my permission to leave the site without paying for the fuel or merchandise they take". Obviously some thieving scumbag won a court case with "He didn't say I had to pay!"

Just when you thought the court system couldn't get any worse. That's worse than the McDonald's lady suing and winning because she spilled coffee on herself, claiming she wasn't told it was hot.

[ThePhoneGoddess]

Just when you thought the court system couldn't get any worse. That's worse than the McDonald's lady suing and winning because she spilled coffee on herself, claiming she wasn't told it was hot.

Actually that is one of the most erroneously reported cases in the history of lawsuits. McDonald's went out of their way to make that case seem like a frivolous lawsuit, and they succeeded, because that is how most people remember it. This is a good accounting of the actual facts in the infamous "Mcdonald's coffee case":

http://www.lectlaw.com/files/cur78.htm

The woman in question had 3rd degree burns and had to have skin grafts!

[wagegoth]

Thanks, PhoneGoddess.

Back on topic, I don't understand why all gas stations aren't pre-pay. The stations here have been that way for years. I know there are always whiners when things change, but if everyone does it then they have to stop whining and adapt. Adapt or die!

[South Texan]

Actually that is one of the most erroneously reported cases in the history of lawsuits.

BLESS YOU, ThePhoneGoddess!

I am so sick of the McDonalds coffee case being held up as a frivolous suit. McDonalds has a great PR machine.

(Sorry for the off topic nature of this.)

[Andara Bledin]

OT: Oh, good... not one, but three people beat me to pointing out how mis-perceived the whole "McDonald's coffee" case is.

^-.-^

[AriRashkae]

Stella Awards

I swear, it's like a rundown of SCs in the court system. I alternately and when I read those.

[Becks]

I'm so proud of your ability to see a shady character like that! It took me several driveoffs. Not everyone wore sunglasses or hats or purposely pumped on the furthest away pumps.

Same here.

Driveoffs suck.

One thing's changed in the last 4 years - the drive-off statement form now includes a checkbox marked "I declare nobody has my permission to leave the site without paying for the fuel or merchandise they take". Obviously some thieving scumbag won a court case with "He didn't say I had to pay!"

How very sad that such a statement had to become a matter of form. :deep sigh: