U-Haul: Crooked renters refill gas tank with water

[Blue_Tires]

Source: KATU-TV (Oregon)

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Crooks have come up with a new scam to get out of paying for gas, and it's costing truck rental companies thousands of dollars. Crooks reportedly rent U-Haul trucks then, when the time comes to return the truck, top off the tank with water instead of gas, wrecking the engine. U-Haul dealers say the scam has become more prevalent as gas prices continue to rise.

"We had five or six (instances of) water in fuel (tank) last week," said Kim Merow.

Merow is a U-Haul veteran who has been on the job for 14 years. She says she witnessed gas scams plunge to a new low in the past two months as gas prices traveled further into record territory.

"It seemed a little bit odd in the very beginning when this started happening, but the more and more it happens, we shake our shoulders," she said.

Some scammers get away with it because the trucks are often handed over to the next customer very quickly. But water in the gas tank eventually brings the trucks to a sputtering stop.


Read more: http://www.katu.com/news/local/20902539.html

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sign of the times?