GASOLINE DRIVE-OFFS: DESIGNING A LESS CONVENIENT ENVIRONMENT (FROM CRIME PREVENTION STUDIES, VOLUME 2, P 91- 114, 1994, RONALD V CLARKE, ED. -- SEE NCJ-147834)

• NCJ Number: 147838
• Author(s): N G La Vigne
• Date Published: 1994
• Length: 24 pages
• Sale Source: Criminal Justice Press/Willow Tree Press
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Recent studies of convenience store crime have focused on robberies, but gasoline thefts represent a troublesome and often overlooked public policy problem that drains valuable police resources.

Abstract

An analysis of calls for service from 38 convenience stores in Austin, Texas, indicates that gasoline drive offs account for 48 percent. In addition, gasoline drive offs are concentrated among a very few convenience stores. From the perspective of convenience store owners, the drive off problem is primarily a nuisance; they can recover their losses through insurance claims and higher prices. Costs to the public, however, are much greater in terms of police time and financial resources. In linking environmental characteristics and business practices of convenience stores to reported gasoline drive offs, the author suggests that removing signs from windows, installing brighter lights, and instituting a pay-first policy can deter such crimes. 33 references, 3 notes, 3 tables, and 1 figure