AIBU to think there's more to the petrol "crisis" than meets the eye?

[tartantroosers]

AIBU to think there's something very weird going on with the fuel "shortages"!
Big caveat- I'm not a conspiracy theorist but it's so bad where we are (Just inside M25) that many people I know won't be able to get to work this week. Garages have queues which are blocking all main routes and they're not even open! Is this a novel way of ensuring that we all "STAY AT HOME" ?!

[malmi]

They haven't ruled out using the military but the problem is that they would only normally take over civilian jobs for a specific emergency situation, and get back to normal as soon as the emergency has passed. In this case the problem is a long term one so there would be no clear end date to the military's support. Government wants the fuel distributors to work it out for themselves using what resources they have got.

[Somebodylikeyew]

I live rurally. I have half a tank left but when i went to the shops today the 7 petrol stations within a half hour drive were all closed.

I’m not going into the office this week till i can get some, I’ve got to prioritise being able to get the kids to school (not walkable, 9 miles away) I am massively lucky to be able to do that and so worried about all the emergency/care/medical staff not being able to get in and the ripple effect it will have on the vulnerable. This will cost lives.

[godmum56]

@PicsInRed

godmum56

It was reports like this, below, initially on tv/radio only. Iirc, at one point I think Boris recommended keeping at least half a tank, but I can't find that in print...

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10023181/Drivers-warned-not-let-fuel-tanks-quarter-ahead-winter-discontent-fuel-crisis.html

"It comes as Petrol Retailers Association last night warned drivers to 'keep a quarter of a tank' of fuel in their vehicles in preparation for potential closures of local petrol stations."

Literally minutes after these reports came out, people began queuing for fuel.

looks like shit stirring to me

[Wabola]

I think that it is more the businesses, BP and a haulage company was mentioned in the news and the media to get more drivers from Europe so that wages could be depressed. Grant Shapps didn't seem to know his arse from his elbow (nothing new there) on Andrew Marr show this morning and just kept say it was self limiting as everyone had full tanks now or words to that effect

[NewlyGranny]

I honestly don't see how everyone with a car filling up over the space of a day or three could cause anything remotely like what we're seeing. There have to be supply shortages on top and we know there have been. I hear motorway services have been prioritised which makes good sense. It's inconvenient if you run out of fuel on a B road; potentially lethal on something starting with M. I'm nearly 200 miles from home visiting family for the weekend and have been out and about draining my quarter of a tank trying to fill up. All the big supermarket filling stations are drained and closed as is anything on a major road. DS knew of a tired old little one in an industrial back street. Job done, I can go home a day late but confident of getting there.

It's a perfect storm of Brexit, Covid and longstanding underlying driver shortage, I think, and a heavy handed message that our just-in-time logistics are on the edge of failure all the time and are not fit for purpose in a post-Brexit post-Covid world!

We need margins and we need them now.

[Blinky21]

No you're not because someone always profits from a crisis....

[Whitefire]

I was on a trip up North up the M1 last Sunday and there were signs on the overhead gantry's saying that there was no fuel at Blyth Services (which is a BP garage), I didn't give it much thought (we don't go that far up and we had filled up further down the road) and had forgotten about it till now - took a few days for the madness to take hold.

I am more concerned about what is going on over there whilst we are all looking the other way. I went past a couple of local petrol stations today - they were both busy but this is fairly normal, so I wouldn't say they were any worse then when they are at their busiest (i.e it is not unusual to have to queue at least a car deep for a pump)

[vjg13]

£30 limit here, Greater Manchester. If all petrol stations stuck to this it would alleviate the immediate issue.

[Rhubarbsoup]

I am slightly cynical as to why the BP guy seemed to make quite a big thing about a tiny, tiny number of garages were having issues with deliveries, and why the media ran with it; but on the whole its just british people being British people.

[MargosKaftan]

@nosquirrels - re thr military- theres not enough HGV drivers in the military to plug the gap, theres an estimated 100,000 drivers needed and about 10,000 military drivers. We'd have to overwork them.



It does feel like some sectors of the press have decided this week to stop pretending the type of Brexit Boris wanted isn't a shitshow - and nudged a carefully balanced situation over into disaster. As I understand it, there is a shortage of drivers for petrol that was causing a small problem, but given most people are still not working full time back in offices and its not school holidays, they could just make it work with lower than normal demand. The press pushed up demand beyond what could be coped with.

[anon12345678901]

The problem is the petrol garages can only hold so much fuel themselves. Which is based on an average amount. Everyone trying to fill up in a day causes the supply that should last days, to empty very quickly. They then await their delivery. BP is reporting a shortage of drivers and as such would have to close only 5 garages, this has been caused by the media and people panic buying.
There is no shortage of fuel in this country.

[HereticFanjo]

This sounded bonkers ... then I just got a breaking news notification from BBC news app that the government has suspended competition law to allow oil companies to work together to deliver fuel. Which all sounds very laudable and pragmatic but I'd love to see the small print - and whether any donations have suddenly headed towards the Tory party.

[Orangejuicemarathoner]

www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/26/uk-essar-energy-second-biggest-oil-refinery-on-brink-of-collapse-reports

Stanlow oil refinery on the brink of bankruptcy

This is not related to lorry drivers, is it.

[Wabola]

You can guarantee someone will be making money out of this

[Dragon50]

The only thing that makes me , is that this govt has been reactive over EVERYTHING.

Covid, Afghanistan, schools meals.

They only act when pushed to.

So why with 72 hrs have they addressed HGV driver visa’s? Ministers on TV, twitter telling the nation not to panic on the same day as it started?

That’s odd.

The shortage will clear in a few days once everyone has petrol, but I think this will be a reoccurring event.

[TableFlowerss]

It’s fine where I live now I’m pleased to say. It will calm down

[OneTC]

I just think it's a largely incompetent government behaving in a largely incompetent manner

[Lightisnotwhite]

Bankruptcy because of a tax bill is not the same as being unprofitable though. Someone would buy it even if it went bust. We can clearly see how important oil

Luckily Britain is a relatively small country . Even at our stupid prices £30 a time will do most people a return journey to work or three or get halfway up the country. Just limit the amount.

[antoniawhite]

I can’t help worrying about how much of a gift Brexit is to disaster capitalists, who depend upon crisis after crisis. JR-M’s father wrote a book extolling disaster capitalism. I hope I’m wrong, but fear that this is what we face now - just onething after another. God knows I wish it had been chaos with Ed Miliband in 2015.

[Timeforachangetoday12]

I do feel the only winner here is the oil companies….& their share price going up. Pleasing shareholders.
Affected by covid - less travel by all transport means.
They had photos of full shipping tankers waiting in the sea as no one needed it last year & now that’s being used and a nice inflated price us the consumer willingly without complaint paying.

Oh and maybe the government being able to fast track visas for drivers - not upsetting the general public by putting this in place - as we need the drivers ummm or Christmas could be ruined.

[Sarah2384]

@Figgygal

The only thing going on here is that people yet again are showing themselves as being monumentally selfish and stupid

No, many people do genuinely need fuel to go about their business for the week or two ahead. And if you know you don't have enough to do that business, be it school runs, commuting to or driving for work, taking pets / parents / neighbours for medical treatment, going on holiday or back from holiday, what are you going to do? Fill up, if you happen to see a petrol station with a queue that feels acceptable to you.
There can't be many people who would be prepared to sit in some of the crazy queues I've seen today if they were planning to leave their car on the drive all week.
Don't demonise ordinary people for it. Blame the government or the media instead.

[BrendaBubbles]

And breaking news they’re changing competition law to help resolve the issue. Clearly everything is normal behind the scenes to be doing that..

[Dreamstate]

Every corner of business is doing its upmost to claw back losses from covid. It is so blanks tly obvious in your face peolle refuse to believe it!

Lets spark a food shortage scafe to make people buh more food and then we hack up the prices too.

Lets spark a fuel shortage scare cos we have to deliver profits and jack up prices on top

Lets spark a buying frenzy, scaring people that they beed to get their Xmas shopping in now because of xyz problem, sparking a buying frenzy, if course prices will be already have been increased.

And majority of people fall for it

[Dreamstate]

Oh and that one shop with an empty shelf or that out of the thiusand of fuel garages only 5 are closing....makes for good scaremongering

[Rhubarbsoup]

@BrendaBubbles

And breaking news they’re changing competition law to help resolve the issue. Clearly everything is normal behind the scenes to be doing that..

It's to respond to people going bananas and bleeding forecourts dry for no real reason. All it means is that they can share data etc to identify which areas are running short. It's a long standing contingency plan that has just been enacted rather than quickly thrown together out of desperation.