MONEY MORAL DILEMMA: Would you report him to the police?

AngryTank

First off I don't like thieves. I'd be telling him what a fool he's been, if he's in financial trouble stealing petrol isn't going to solve his problems. Also as some people have pointed out he's probobly been caught on a cctv, so i'd get him to drive me to the petrol station offer to pay what he stole and make him apologise to the station manager (hopefully this will be enough for him not to get charged by the police). Then it's time to sit down and have a good talk.

He needs to look at his finance's and get some priorities sorted. I guess in short I wouldn't report him but if he wasn't willing to go back and apologise and pay for what he took I'd have to let him know that our friendship would be in trouble.

geri1965_2

No, I wouldn't report him. I doubt the police would even do anything about it anyway.

I have a friend who does far worse things than that and whilst I don't approve of everything he does, I wouldn't report him for it. If he does things I don't agree with I normally tell him.

rag_doll

I'd tell him he was taking a major risk & could be picked up on the forecourt's CCTV, I wouldn't report him though.

Ashabumbleb

Lenfo wrote: »

I can't believe that would work. Would they really believe he "forgot to pay" (yeah right) and say "oh well never mind pay us next time you're passing"? I imagine they'd take his phone number/get the police to trace the call and prosecute him as hard as they can. Its not like he accidentally wandered out with a 40p newspaper under his arm.

That said, I wouldn't dob him in, but I'd tell him that if I found he'd done it a second time and it became a habit I couldn't turn a blind eye.

Hummmm....it could be an "honest mistake" I have almost done it a couple of times. Now that the pay at pump thing is more common, every so often I have to think about whether I am using the pay at pump, and if I have paid or not, but then I am a ditsy blonde.

I wouldn't encourage the behavior, but I would understand the predicament. I would advise my friend not to do it again, but I wouldn't tell anyone........unless it continued.

Surely they take a not of numberplates before people drive away. I'm thinking he might be better off turning himself in before he gets a knock on the door!!

Pound

Lenfo wrote: »

I can't believe that would work. Would they really believe he "forgot to pay" (yeah right) and say "oh well never mind pay us next time you're passing"? I imagine they'd take his phone number/get the police to trace the call and prosecute him as hard as they can.

Yes, they would, or more likely they wouldn't care. Reporting it to the police is a lot of hassle and it's much easier just to get payment, that's all anyone cares about especially if you end up making a statement in your own time without being paid. Usually we'd just take their credit card number over the phone and take payment that way if they called in.

The police will usually not do anything if the person claims they simply forgot; especially if they're quick in paying. It actually happens a lot. One time someone drove in with a stolen car and filled it up. They came in and said they would pay later (probably so we wouldn't report their location to the police). We called the police anyway. Guess what, because he said he was going to pay later the police decided it was a civil matter and wouldn't prosecute even though they did charge for stealing a car.

trejoy

No I wouldn`t, they would get a lecture and half about losing their reputation, damage to marriage, making a bad situation worse. If I could help them out, I would. Prisons are full of basically good people who have been silly - it isn`y worth it as it does affect your career options.

riky.p

meehog wrote: »

Not want to talk to you? if you were my mate and you'd just grassed me up for something I told you in confidence, I think I'd be more inclined to smack you in the mouth than listen to your advice about the correct path to take!

As for myself, it wouldn't enter my head to report him, even though I'd tell him that what he did was wrong and that he's taking a massive risk. I honestly can't believe some people are saying they'd report a friend to the police for something like that. We're not talking about somebody confessing to rape or murder, this is a friend who stole some fuel because he felt desperate. I hope this hypothetical guy chooses his friends carefully!

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but either way that little smack would land you with actual bodily harm (a second more serious offence?). However, become a man and admit to it and the offender might possibly get a slap on the wrist. (I’m assuming this character is a first time offender...)
Yes, everyone makes mistakes. That’s why it’s important to scare the S!!! out of a decent person for a first time offence rather than allow them to think they got away with it. Psychologically it will have a large impact.
If you consider the petrol stations point of view the amount of administrative effort would be too great for an official claim, the most probable course of action would be for the offender to pay the outstanding cost of the fuel stolen.

Moneysaving_Mum

I wouldn't report him to the police, but I would strongly encourage him to go the petrol station and put it right. I would give him the money, but I would make it very clear that I would only do it once, and another time I would have to report him.

Cat8t3

I wouldn't tell the police. He is a friend, and the fact that he told me in confidence alreadt suggests that he is ashamed of his actions..

I was once in a Tesco petrol station and while being second in the cue, the cashier said number 12 has drove off without paying, the other girl replyed thats 2 today. When i got to the till, i said you dont seem to bothered that someone has just drove off without paying for the fuel, the girl replied we have no cctv and so no one can prove it, and it happens all the time. Great she just told the whole shop this information.

Jay37

I'd just like to add that there is no such thing as a victimless crime. The victim here is either the forecourt attendant who,at the very least, will be reprimanded for letting him drive off and at worst could loose his job if this had happened before! or the petrol retailer who makes a few pence per litre profit and to whom 1 drive off a day is make or break. Whether they get paid for the fuel or not they still have to pay the supplier - they cannot go to the supplier and say 'sorry, but we had 5 drive off's this week at £20.00 each so we won't be paying you for that fuel' - it just doesn't work like that.

I would not report him personally because as others have said it would only make a bad situation worse BUT I totally disagree with what he has done and would tell him so.

Finally, it is a complete myth that petrol retailers have state of the art CCTV systems on their forecourts that can read a number plate - most cannot afford to run such a system and the police are completely uninterested in prosecuting in these circumstances.