Pre-Pay Gas Not Coming in January

By Brian Peach, The Paducah Sun, Ky.

Dec. 8–Consumers hoping to avoid pre-paying for gasoline in Paducah may take comfort in knowing they’ll probably make it through half the winter before passage of any ordinance making it mandatory.

The City Commission intended to introduce the ordinance next Tuesday, but Police Chief Randy Bratton said Wednesday that a late-January presentation of findings is more likely. That means the earliest the measure could be passed would be February.

Bratton told commissioners Tuesday night that rising gas prices have produced an increase in “drive-offs,” requiring officers to spend more time on what he called “petty crimes” of not paying for fuel.

Commissioners agreed that a pre-pay policy would have benefits but wanted to hear what store owners had to say.

“We don’t want to introduce it and wait six weeks to vote for it,” Bratton said, adding that he won’t be able to attend most meetings in January. “This is a very involved issue.”

Police figures from Jan. 1 to Sept. 30 show that the Five Star Shell Mart at Park Avenue and H.C. Mathis Drive had the most drive-offs: 13 thefts reported during that period.

Gene Sipes, general manager of the store, said he makes five of the less visible pumps pre-pay now, but the other nine are usually not. “That eliminates the biggest part of the problem,” he said.

Most of the thefts occur well after dark, Sipes and police figures indicated, but some thieves are bold enough to drive away during the day. It’s not an easy crime to combat.

“Most are southern Illinois customers that are the drive-offs,” Sipes said, adding that the police view it as a low-priority crime, so resources aren’t exhausted to make arrests.

For anyone without a credit or debit card — which would still be allowed at the pump if the ordinance passes — or those who simply want to go inside to shop around, the trip would have to be made before filling.

Vickie Shelby of Paducah called the idea of a pre-pay policy “crazy” as she put $20.08 into her tank at Sipes’ store on Wednesday. She said people are in too much of a hurry to worry about paying ahead of time. If, for instance, the person overpays, he or she would have to go back in for a refund or forfeit the money, she noted.

“I might go a little farther for gas,” Shelby said, referring to getting her gas in the county or another city where pre-pays aren’t mandatory.

Still, some consumers are ready to embrace the change.

Raymond Dodd of Aurora visits Paducah a couple of times a week and stops for gas occasionally. On Wednesday, he stopped with a friend at the Southside E-Z Stop Shop on Bridge Street, where a pre-pay policy is already in force on the four pumps.

“Our reason to do it was because of the number of times we have drive-offs,” shop owner Chuck Heins said. “We’re not able to recover that. The (profit) margin doesn’t change, regardless of whether gas is a dollar or $3, so your loss becomes more. You hate to lose it.”

As one of, if not the only owner in Paducah to make all his pumps pre-pay, Heins says a pre-pay ordinance would level the playing field among gas stations. “I would foresee it not being a problem,” he said, “because then, in a way, the ordinance is where the blame would lie.”

Dodd doesn’t blame the store owner anyway. He said a city mandate would implement “safety policies all the way around” by avoiding drive-offs, which could turn into bigger and more expensive problems.

Charles Hall, a regular at the store, still fills up before going inside to pay, despite the pre-pay policy. He said Wednesday that clerks know him there and he never gets any grief. However, if he’s forced by law to pre-pay, and not by a flexible company policy, he’ll be upset. “What if you pay $20 and (the tank) doesn’t hold $20?” he asked. “Then you have to come back in.”

Another store manager, Majed Mouhamad of the Superway at 8th Street and Park Avenue,agreed that the more stations to do it, the fairer it is for everyone. His station doesn’t allow any payment at the pump now, so people always have to come inside. But it would be a matter of coming in before paying.

Linda Myers of Paducah said just outside the store that she doesn’t like the idea and said it’s not the city’s place to step in. “I think it’s up to the businesses,” she said. “I usually don’t have cash in hand to pre-pay. I use a credit card. I don’t want to pay and then worry” about someone else’s gas being charged on the card.

Once, Myers said, she accidentally drove off without paying, but returned after she got a couple of blocks away. “I apologized and (the clerk) said she didn’t even notice.”

Managers such as Sipes said that type of honesty is more common than most people realize.

Chief Bratton estimated the number of drive-offs this calendar year at 160, which includes the 147 his department had handled as of Wednesday.

The revenue loss to businesses was estimated at $5,000, based on a $30-per-tank estimate. That figure includes cars and the occasional report of a large truck, which may drive off with more than $100 in gas.

“I’m sure there are unreported crimes,” Bratton said. “One (owner) did tell me that if they don’t get a (license plate) number, they don’t call us.”

Other options to combat the thefts include more video cameras, but that’s still not a sure way to end the threat.

“There are not many things we do where I can guarantee 160 crimes will not occur next year,” Bratton said. “This would do that … this is a proven, effective crime-prevention tool.”

Further, Bratton said, the 200 officer hours saved annually by not writing reports would mean more officers could work on more serious felonies, or be directed to traffic duty.

On a side note, Bratton said he will look internally at his department to see if driver’s license suspensions are being pursued in drive-off cases.

Bratton concedes that consumers may not be thrilled with the change, but he’s confident they’ll get used to it. “It’s just a change of shopping behavior, and it’s disconcerting to some people. But in the long term, I think the pros outweigh the cons.”

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