Filling Stations
Introduction
Filling stations are experiencing a growing problem with thieves who fill their vehicles and drive away without payment for the fuel. We have developed an improved solution to the conventional use of ANPR that provides an alert when a ‘rogue’ vehicle reappears at a filling station on the system, even if the number plates have been changed. For more information, please click here.
Description
Most filling stations already use CCTV which is usually installed so as to focus on individual pumps. This may be coupled with an ANPR system so that ‘delinquent’ vehicles can be identified if they revisit or visit another filling station sharing the same system. If the vehicle is using false plates or changes them between visits, the ANPR will not provide an alert.
We can offer a range of solutions. At the simplest level, there can be a camera focused on vehicles entering the site which, using our technology, captures the registration plate and, thereby, the vehicle details. At the same time, one of our Artemis devices will capture a unique identifier for the vehicle. If a vehicle leaves without payment being made, the staff will, generally, not unlock the pump and, after a period of time (typically, 5 to 15 minutes) they will have established that it is a ‘driveaway’. They will then replay the CCTV to identify the vehicle and the registration. This can then be placed on a database of Persons of Interest (PoIs).
When using our technology, the staff will be able to use the touch screen we supply to enter both the vehicle registration and the unique vehicle identifier on the PoIs database. When the vehicle returns to that filling station (or another on our system), the vehicle will be identified, and an alert provided to staff. They will then be on notice not to unlock the relevant pump until prepayment has been obtained. Discreet notices on the forecourt will inform customers that the management reserves the right to require prepayment.
We can provide more sophisticated solutions with the ability to identify particular vehicles at particular pumps without the need for staff to make a visual check and avoiding the need to replay CCTV to identify ‘driveaways’. We can provide real-time face recognition to identify individuals associated with ‘driveaways’. We realise that our solution needs to be cost-effective and hence we have different solutions for different situations.