Incidents involving drivers filling up their vehicles with fuel and driving away without paying rose 15%, according to ANAREC, the Portuguese fuel dealers association.
This equates to an average of 150 “drive-offs” per day in August compared with 130 per day in February.
António Amaral, vice-president of ANAREC, said: “Something must be done to stop this type of crime as it could lead petrol stations to bankruptcy.
He added: “We estimate an average monthly loss of €240,000 on the country’s petrol stations network.”
