As temperatures drop and fuel prices continue to rise, members of the British Security Industry Association (BSIA) are helping to protect consumers against a worrying increase in heating oil thefts, Vigilance can report.
According to a BSIA source in a string of incidents, thieves have targeted unsecured heating oil tanks to steal thousands of litres of fuel, which can then be sold on the black market. It
Vigilance learnt that around 1.3 million homes – many in remote, rural areas – depend on heating oil to get them through the winter, paying an average of £900 for 1000 litres of fuel. Farms are particularly at risk, with insurance company NFU Mutual reporting more than 100 thefts of this kind, totalling a value of as much as £50,000.
The source said in order to combat this problem, members of the BSIA’s Security Systems Section (SSS), which specialises in the installation of intruder alarms, have developed a number of tailored alarm systems that can offer protection to external heating oil storage tanks and external garden sheds.
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