Fuel theft claims ‘severely exaggerated’

The FTW source quoted in the article “Taboo fuel theft issue costs operators millions” (FTW July 31, 2009) must be surrounded by criminals if his figures are correct, according to Kevin Martin, MD of Freightliner Transport and vicechairman of the SA Association of Freight Forwarders (Saaff) division, the Durban harbour carriers’ association. In the article the transport operator told us that a company operating a fleet of 100 trucks was losing an average of R1-million a month due to fuel theft. And, he added: “You should be costing a minimum of 50-litres per truck per trip. The black market for diesel is an industry of millions of rands. And sadly there is very little you can do to stop it. So most operators just ensure the loss is made up in rates and pricing.” But Martin, while not wanting to minimise a very real problem for road transport operators, expressed himself “highly amused” at our trucking source’s quote, questioning whether the trucker had done his numbers and made his assumptions correctly. “A company that employs at least 100 thieves as drivers i.e. the entire workforce, all stealing over 10% of each truck’s fuel per month – valued at R10 000-pertruck- per-month? “No sir – you are looking in the wrong place. To steal that much diesel takes real management skills – look to your fuel control clerks and managers as the more likely culprits.” Martin also told FTW that he found it impossible to believe that over 100 drivers in any one company could be pocketing that sort of stolen cash each month without somebody talking.