Is it time to panic buy now?

[Mark]

Haven't seen any queues so I guess not.

[Rollo]

Mr Cameron was on the Beeb talking about "sensible precautions" and said that motorists should consider keeping their tanks topped up because at the moment there is no shortage and that a tanker strike would require seven days notice.

However, I found this instructional video from the last time this sort of thing happened:
23L4AHfd4xc

[GridGirl]

No queues for me this morning. No panic to report in my neck of the woods. How boring.

[schmenke]

Hey, I remember vacationing in the south of France during that "crisis" :) . We had to drive our rental vehicle across the border into Italy to fuel up :) .
If I recall, it was the lorry-drivers that were protesting something or other (price of diesel?). What's the beef this time?

[ioan]

First I thought that it was about something important like maybe Apple pondering not to produce iPads anymore! :D

[Mark]

Hey, I remember vacationing in the south of France during that "crisis" :) . We had to drive our rental vehicle across the border into Italy to fuel up :) .
If I recall, it was the lorry-drivers that were protesting something or other (price of diesel?). What's the beef this time?

Working conditions for fuel tanker drivers.

[Dave B]

I must admit that my heart doesn't exactly bleed for them on 45K.

If there are safety issues to address then fair enough but I don't think that's the reason behind this threatened strike.

[donKey jote]

60K€ for driving a truck does sound like about 50% too much, unless they have a Uni degree or something :devil:

[Mark]

60K€ for driving a truck does sound like about 50% too much, unless they have a Uni degree or something :devil:

It is a truck full of petrol which if mishandled means you die.. Which is a little bit more risk than your normal lorry driver.

[GridGirl]

Today I read that the government's advice is to top up when your fuel tank is half full. As I topped up yesterday morning as a necessity and only refuel roungly once a month a logical guestimate will be that that my fuel tank will be half empty in two weeks time when the actual strike is supposed to take place. On this basis and presuming my local petrol stations haven't already run empty by that point in time I think I might get to panic buy fuel after all just in order to comply with government advice.

Do you think I need to start stockpiling Wartburtons bread? When ever we've had a fuel crisis in the past a tv crew usually does a feature from the bakery aisle in a supermarket with two old biddies fighting in the background over the last baguette in the shop. :s

[Dave B]

I'm going to buy a jerrycan and stockpile loads on Francis Maude's advice. What could possibly go wrong? :s

[Mark]

Knowing your history of fire related events, I dread to think.

[Dave B]

:D

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[donKey jote]

It is a truck full of petrol which if mishandled means you die.. Which is a little bit more risk than your normal lorry driver.
I guess that's why petrol station attendants have such high salaries too :devil:

[donKey jote]

It is a truck full of petrol which if mishandled means you die.. Which is a little bit more risk than your normal lorry driver.
Still, it sounds way too high for what I considered might be the salaries in Germany...
I reckoned ~2000€-~2200 monthly salary.
then I googled this:
Verdienst tankwagen fahrer - Gehälter tankwagen fahrer und Löhne (http://www.gehalt.de/einkommen/suche/Tankwagen-Fahrer?branche=Logistik%2C+Transport%2C+Verkehr)
27000€
Normal lorry drivers probably get around 20K€ here.

[schmenke]

I guess that's why petrol station attendants have such high salaries too :devil:

Aye, but it's the lorry drivers that are responsible for filling the underground tanks. At least around here.
The attendent does not much more than sell ciggies and lottery tickets :mark: .

[donKey jote]

Nothing, except people with degrees tend to earn more despite not necessarily deserving the pay difference. :)

55k€ just seems a hell of a lot to me for a tanker driver...

[driveace]

45K is very good pay for a truckie ,they have all the training and the health and safety certificates,paid for by their employers,so why the problem. A friend of mine turned a full artic fuel tanker over in Bradford about 5 years ago ,just at top of M606 ,and the only problem was the fuel that did leak ,was going down the drains .Some truck drivers carry far more dangerous cargo that fuel .

[Sonic]

I'm dreading the dirty looks I am going to get tomorrow when I turn up with my 5L fuel can - I hasten to add I need the fuel for my mower and not a stockpile. Perhaps I should stick a sign to that effect on my windscreen?

On the subject of panic buying, the government have really screwed up on this one; in the same breath they are telling us to top up at half a tank they are telling us that the majority of us drive around on 1/3rd tanks. Following that logic, they are directly responsible for the ridiculous queues I saw at every petrol station I passed today.

I sahll fill up when I always do - when that little light comes on the dashboard.

[Roamy]

The Panic buy here is for guns and ammo. If you have enough of these you will be able go get gas or at least keep what you have.

[GridGirl]

Facebook reliably informs me via my numerous teacher and mummy friends that schools are breaking up for the Easter holidays tomorrow. I would presume there has to be some correlation between the increase in the number of people filling up and the number of people potentially driving to a holiday location in the next few days which has further increased by the extent of the panic buying. I can only presume that the panic buying will continue if there is no further concrete strike news next week as again there would most likely be an increase in fuel consumption as people go away or use their cars more during the bank holiday weekend.

[tfp]

I wonder how much money Cameron is making out of this :angryfire

[wedge]

I was up at Nottingham

I swear that place is full of plebs.

Drove past a forecourt that was closed down

The road that leads to Sainsburys/retail park had a massive queue

Walked past an idiot who told his mate on the phone there strike; walked past another idiot who said the strike would be Monday

And now I've just watched Question Time.

http://www.signature9.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/david-cameron-face-palm-300x263.jpg

And this for society as a whole:

http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/168/887/TripleFacePalm_display_image.jpg?1267690634

[Sonic]

I wonder how much money Cameron is making out of this :angryfire

I would suggest no more than normal.

One garage on the news took a delivery of 40,000L of fuel - an amount that would usually last for six days, but because of the mass hysteria will now last just two. At first glance it would seem the government coffers would be swollen by that surge in demand, but as the garage couldn't get another delivery until next Tuesday the manager will simply have to shut the forecourt for several days. In short, I doubt Mr Cameron is rubbing his hands together with glee as its the same amount of tax revenue just spread over fewer days if this example is indicative of the situation nationwide.

[Knock-on]

I have a conspiracy theory. Cameron isn't quashing the story to let people panic buy as it's the end of the financial year today. He's just squeezing out the last few drops from the economy ;)

[Rollo]

I have a conspiracy theory. Cameron isn't quashing the story to let people panic buy as it's the end of the financial year today. He's just squeezing out the last few drops from the economy ;)

Corporations, Some Partnerships and Trusts, etc. run a financial year of 1st April to 31st March.
Individuals are on a financial year of 6th April to 5th April the following year. April 6 is still a week away.

[Dave B]

I have a conspiracy theory. Cameron isn't quashing the story to let people panic buy as it's the end of the financial year today. He's just squeezing out the last few drops from the economy ;)

I think you're wrong with that theory, but it is noticable that people are talking about fuel shortages and not the most unfair budget for decades, or the OECD saying that Britain is back in recession, or the record youth unemployment figures, or even George bloody Galloway winning a by-election. Nice distraction policy, Mr Cameron.

[Dave B]

By the way, however stupid Francis Maude may have been by suggesting we stockpile jerrycans, there's no accounting for the idiocy of this woman who set her kitchen alight decanting petrol while the gas was lit :crazy:

Woman suffers serious burns in kitchen petrol accident | Politics | The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/mar/30/woman-petrol-burns-york-fire)


A woman has suffered serious burns to her whole body after fumes from petrol she was transferring between containers in her kitchen was ignited by the cooker.

The woman was decanting fuel at her home in York on Thursday when it ignited and set fire to her clothing, resulting in 40% burns. She was treated on the scene by paramedics, before being taken to Pinderfields hospital with "serious and significant" burns to her whole body, said North Yorkshire fire service spokesman Peter Hudson.

"Her daughter asked her mum for petrol because she had run out," said Hudson. "She did not think about the fact the gas cooker was on. The petrol then went up and she got burnt. Thankfully we were there very quickly."

There's simply not enough scorn to heap on the woman.

[Knock-on]

You love that story Dave. It's the 2nd time I've read it from you :laugh:

[Dave B]

More lunacy courtesy of The Guardian:

"In a statement, the motoring organisation said that in Macclesfield, Cheshire, one observer had seen an elderly woman using a petrol pump to fill jam jars. "A lady about 75 was seen filling up 20 empty one-gallon paint tins with plastic lids and also a tray of jam jars in her boot with petrol. She had her boot up so the petrol station staff couldn't see what she was doing.

"AA staff went over to her to stop her. Then station staff came out and prevented her from what she was doing. Her excuse was that 'her husband did it every week'," the organisation said.

Another man was seen at the same petrol station filling one gallon washing-up liquid bottles with fuel.

[Mark]

What's a gallon?

[Dave B]

A badly-spelled pirate ship?

[BDunnell]

What does a university degree have to do with anything? It's just another form of trade school. Only with a much lower percentage of competent graduates.

Let me guess — you don't have one.

Are you able to provide a definite figure for this alleged 'lower percentage', or is this statement simply 'what you reckon'? And the notion of university as 'trade school' is nonsensical. I didn't go to university to learn a trade. I went there to learn.

[Dave B]

If one is to believe the Telegraph story quoted in turn in this Guardian article (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/mar/31/petrol-crisis-thatcher-moment-tories), the tories did indeed engineer the crisis.


In a private message from MPs to constituency associations, seen by the Daily Telegraph's Charles Moore, members were told: "This is our Thatcher moment."

The message reportedly continues: "In order to defeat the coming miners' strike, [Thatcher] stockpiled coal. When the strike came, she weathered it, and the Labour party, tarred by the strike, was humiliated. In order to defeat the coming fuel drivers' strike, we want supplies of petrol stockpiled. Then, if the strike comes, we will weather it, and Labour, in hock to the Unite union, will be blamed."

Shocking behaviour :(

[BDunnell]

If the public is so stupid as to panic-buy fuel when there is no imminent crisis, is it also intelligent enough to take on board the message about party funding?

[steveaki13]

Its a strange situation, Petrol is one of the most dangerous things the masses deal with every day, if this was high strength weed killer or other substances people need licenses to handle them in large amounts, and yet because it is so fundamental, people seem to have forgotten how dangerous it is as mentioned above. People pouring it between containers and using electrical and heat equipment around it.

How stupid can you be????

People appear to be plain stupid. I am so cautious around petrol, I make sure I do everything I can to limit dangers.

Also I saw a garage with empty signs at the pumps and people were actually waiting at the pumps for the next tanker to arrive. I couldn't believe it, besides you're not aloud in a petrol station when tankers fill them up are you???

This sort of thing just brings out the worst in people. Crazy, stupid, idiotic and short sighted ness.

[ArrowsFA1]

If one is to believe the Telegraph story quoted in turn in this Guardian article (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/mar/31/petrol-crisis-thatcher-moment-tories), the tories did indeed engineer the crisis.

Shocking behaviour :(
Indeed, and yet still they're playing petty political points scoring rather than attempting to provide any kind of leadership. On Sunday William Hague said (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/apr/01/fuel-tanker-firms-union-talks) the "solution" is for the union to "to call off the strike".

There is no strike.

[airshifter]

Indeed, and yet still they're playing petty political points scoring rather than attempting to provide any kind of leadership. On Sunday William Hague said (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/apr/01/fuel-tanker-firms-union-talks) the "solution" is for the union to "to call off the strike".

There is no strike.

In that case the union as done well! :laugh:


Makes me wish I had my truck over there are times like these. With 38 gallons of fuel capacity, I could triple my money selling gas out of one of the tanks.