Fuel fraud can have devastating consequences on fleets, especially for businesses that are already struggling with the high cost of fuel.

For the purpose of Fraud Guard, The Fuel Store classes fuel card fraud as things that are not within the end user’s (the driver’s) control. Some examples of this are:
- Cloned card
- Skimmed card
- Transactions caused by a site compromise
- Fraudulent merchant activity
- A swipe and sign transaction on a lost card
- An error by us such as failing to stop a fuel card upon customer request.

The Fuel Store does not class fuel card misuse by drivers, or other employees of the customer’s business, as fraud. Some examples of this are:

- A chip and pin transaction on a lost card.
- Card used by an ex-employee.
- Card used for personal fill-ups (including jerry cans).
- Incorrect details inputted by end user at the site.
- Not logging out cards at automated sites.

According to the“Fraud Matters” report by Shell, around 65% of fleet managers of company cars view fuel-related theft as a big problem for their firm. Data from the DVLA supports this concern. During July-September 2023, the DVLA received over 39,000 requests for information on drivers thought to be guilty of fuel theft - 77% more than 2022.

Our customer portal gives fleet managers the ability to manage cards and monitor fuel transactions by date, driver, location and fuel spend. Regularly accessing this data is a great first step to identifying unusual trends that could indicate card fraud or misuse. The portal facilitates simple card administration tasks such as cancelling cards when drivers have left the business, or cancelling lost cards - which is a first step to avoiding card misuse. Information in the customer portal can also allow fleet managers to raise the alarm, so that the FraudGuard team will can investigate any suspicious activity.

Fraud Guard is your insurance policy against fuel card fraud. Fleet managers simply flag anything they think is suspicious, or report lost and stolen cards, and our team will step in, carry out an investigation, and reimburse any costs incurred by the fraudulent activity.

Fraud Guard is only available to our fuel card customers. If you haven’t yet got a fuel card, please look at our range of solutions, for businesses of all sizes.

When monitoring possible fuel fraud, it pays to keep an eye out for unusual fueling patterns. These might include frequent fuel purchases within a short period, transactions taking place at unusual hours, or multiple transactions in different locations. Excessive fuel consumption, fuel consumption higher than the fuel tank capacity. or a sudden increase in fuel expenses could also inculcate that the card is being used for a non-fleet-vehicle. Transactions involving unusually high amounts of fuel, or odometer readings that do not align with the amount of fuel purchased, can also be a red flag.

FraudGuard is an add-on service. While it isn’t included with your fuel card as standard, adding it to your package is as simple as giving our team a call. If you want added protection from fraud, let the team know and we will provide a no-obligation quote for the service.