My husband has had the petrol drained from his scooter when its been parked at our house (on the front garden behind a gate) 3 times in the last couple of months. Especially annoying as he normally manages to get to the bottom of our road (we're on Canonbie rd) when the bike grinds to a halt, and its a long walk to the nearest petrol station (as pushing it back uphill is actually a worse option).

Our neighbours on the East Dulwich forum are experiencing a bit of a spate of these type of thefts - http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/...msg-489336

Anyone else having trouble?

Petrol thefts! It's like living in the third world! What could anyone make from a scooter's worth of petrol? Unless they're using it to burn down their vastly price-inflated FH home to claim on insurance!

Well exactly (on what they get out of a scooter, rather than the insurance!)

But as most cars now have locking caps these are the last resort it seems. And it also sounds like maybe these are more than opportunists, so several scooters' worth would fill a tank.

It seems petty to report to the police, but the SNT are keen to hear about such things as it helps them build a pattern and often these minor offences lead to people involved in more major stuff

Ooh, I was just talking about the forum and my hubby had a peek, found this thread and had a Eureka moment as he believes this is happening to HIS scooter as well! He thought it was a petrol leak until he saw this thread!

That's what mine thought at first, until he took it to the garage and they said its one of the most common problems they have to fix. On the vespa its really easy to just pull out the fuel line and drain the tank. Its just the 'considerate' thieves that put the line back afterwards and don't cut it - in which case it is a tenner of fuel and 30 quid for a new fuel line! STG, where in SE23 are you?

Agnew Road so a lot further down than you! Hubby realised something was up when he examined it the other day and the cap had been put back on wonky. His is a Vespa too!

I was have been wondering on and off regarding the point that the price of petrol would start this off again. During the oil crisis in the 1970's when fuel prices rocketed siphoning off fuel from cars became a real problem. (Days before locking petrol caps were standard)
I think all victims of this should report it as it may well fit into a larger picture.

If you want to get back at the thieves then there is a cunning plan. Find a few days when you wont need your scooter, pour a load of sugar in the tank. Sit back and wait for thieves to steal fuel. Change fuel and sit back in the safe knowledge that some "yoof" is sitting at the side of the road scratching his head wondering why his pride and joy has come to a juddering (and expensive) halt.

A bit of time on your part but well worth it.

That is a fine plan - I was also thinking that perhaps a few days/weeks of emptying the tank at night and refuelling in the morning might cause them to give up their handy little filling stop.

Are there any other deterrents on the market? Obviously in the 70s locking caps were introduced, but now the scale of the problem I'm presuming will be reduced as it will only be scooters/bikes with easy access, perhaps manufacurers won't come up with anything.

Has anyone got a bike cover, and does this deter the opportunists?

Oh, and the police advice - keep the scooter in the garage. D'oh! now if we had a garage.....

Got to love the good old boys in blue! I guess they were only trying to be helpful....surprised that they didn't just advise you to buy a car so you could lock the cap like the rest of us!!

Never been a biker...how much would an average scooter have when full? That fuel is getting pricey and there seem to be lots of bikes around!!

Now where's me old petrol can.....

A full tank now is about a tenner's worth. If they strike lucky and get a full tank. Hubby is now only half filling to reduce potential loss. Not great pickings and it surprises me that the price increases have led to such a rise in this theft again.

Now, if we were to replace the bike with a car, the commute would cost the £8 congestion charge each day, and would take much longer - so the risk of losing the tenner's worth, when you put it like that, is still cheaper than a car (and public transport).

Yes petrol/diesel is pricy, yet I dont think I could go them lengths by stealing from someones bike/scooter

And remember if your comapre a litre of petrol to a litre of beer, it is pretty cheap [ little quote from Jeremy Clarkson ]

The other thing is to buy a steel braided petrol line, stops them cutting it. It can still be pulled off the tank but isnt going to cost you £30 to replace it.

After a brief respite - the thieves are back. Anyone else get a visit last night? They got a whole £2 worth, my husband thinks. What IS the point???

I actually noticed that it had happened in the middle of the night (but didn't actually catch the culprits) so we reported it to the non-emergency police number then and there. They said they would forward it to the right police station telephone investigation team.

I did see a police 4X4 drive slowly past this morning, so perhaps they are looking into it. Next plan is to just put enough fuel in it each day to get to work and back, so that (we hope) they will just give up if after a few tries they don't get anything.

The little scrotes will have a number of scooter like yours in mind when they run low on fuel so they will be back. Time for using the train and sugar in the tank me thinks.

That is really annoying for you. When we had our old car we used to regularly get our fuel line cut so petrol could be rained (this was back in the 90s) and had to replace the fuel line with a stronger type to prevent this happening.

Unbelievable , is this really happening in The UK in 2010.

My deepest sympathy . May I suggest you get a Pit Bull and tie it next to your bike. A good bite or two might deter them as I would imagine the most the Police would do is give them a caution. Even that is unlikely.

Pit bull is tempting - but then I'd probably be the one in trouble, and doesn't seem fair on the dog!

Sugar in the tank also tempting just for the revenge factor, but the crazy thing is that the cost of the train regularly will actually probably work out more than the cost of the petrol taken. Its the annoyance rather than the cost (although that's starting to mount up). For now, we are leaving no petrol in it when parked, topping up from a can before making a journey, and have put a sign on the bike to that effect. Hopefully some fruitless trips will deter further activity.

Also thinking about getting a cover for the bike. Does anyone have any experience of whether they deter criminals? To me, it seems that it would still be obvious there is a bike there (and if they are past 'visitors', they will know it anyway) - but is it just a little bit more hassle that will make them move on, do you think???

DO NOT put a sign on the bike to say it has no petrol, the bike WILL be vandalised.

A cover is a good idea but get one that can be padlocked or it will get stolen.

Would definitely recommend a cover - I have a scooter which I cover when it's parked.

So far (touch wood) I haven't had any of the problems described above. It's a little bit of hassle when you leave in the morning, and come back at night, but is worth it for a little peace of mind.

You can buy ones which can be chained through the wheels both front and back and which ought to deter the opportunist thief. Plus it will protect all that hardy Italian engineering from the perils of the British summer.