What happens if you drive off without paying for gas in Minnesota?

• 2022 Minnesota Statutes
• CIVIL ACTIONS
• Chapter 604
• Section 604.15

604.15 CIVIL LIABILITY FOR RECEIVING MOTOR FUEL WITHOUT PAYING.

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Subdivision 1.Definitions.

For purposes of this section:

(1) "motor fuel" means a liquid, regardless of its properties, used to propel a vehicle;

(2) "retailer" means a person that sells motor fuel at retail; and

(3) "vehicle" means a motor vehicle or watercraft that is self-propelled and that uses motor fuel for propulsion.

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Subd. 2.Acts constituting.

(a) The owner of a vehicle that receives motor fuel that was not paid for is liable to the retailer for the price of the motor fuel received and a service charge of $30. This charge may be imposed immediately upon the mailing of the notice under subdivision 3, if notice of the service charge was conspicuously displayed on the premises from which the motor fuel was received. The notice must include a statement that additional civil penalties will be imposed if payment is not received within 30 days. Only one service charge may be imposed under this paragraph for each incident. If a law enforcement agency obtains payment for the motor fuel on behalf of the retailer, the service charge may be retained by the law enforcement agency for its expenses.

(b) If the price of the motor fuel received is not paid within 30 days after the retailer has mailed notice under subdivision 3, the owner is liable to the retailer for the price of the motor fuel received, the service charge as provided in paragraph (a), plus a civil penalty not to exceed $100 or the price of the motor fuel, whichever is greater. In determining the amount of the penalty, the court shall consider the amount of the fuel taken and the reason for the nonpayment. The retailer shall also be entitled to:

(1) interest at the legal rate for judgments under section 549.09 from the date of nonpayment; and

(2) reasonable attorney fees, but not to exceed $500.

The civil penalty may not be imposed until 30 days after the mailing of the notice under subdivision 3.

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Subd. 3.Notice of nonpayment.

Notice of nonpayment that includes a citation to this section and a description of the penalties contained in it shall be sent by the retailer to the owner by regular mail, supported by an affidavit of service by mailing, to the address indicated by records on the vehicle under section 86B.401 or 168.346. The notice must include a signed statement by the employee who reported the act describing what the employee observed and the license number of the motor vehicle. Failure of the owner to receive a notice is not a defense to liability under this section.

An affidavit of service by mailing must be retained by the retailer.

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Subd. 4.Notice of dispute.

If, within the 30-day period referred to in subdivision 2, paragraph (b), the owner sends written notice to the retailer disputing the retailer's claim that the owner received motor fuel from the retailer without paying for it, the retailer may collect the price of the motor fuel and the civil penalties imposed by this section only pursuant to a judgment rendered by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Upon receipt of the notice, the retailer shall cease all collection efforts.

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Subd. 4a.Trade association services.

A trade association recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as an exempt organization under section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code may, on behalf of a member retailer, give and receive notices authorized by this section and collect payments for motor fuel and the service charge specified under subdivision 2.

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Subd. 5.Not a bar to criminal liability.

Civil liability under this section does not preclude criminal liability under applicable law.

Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Beginning Aug. 1, Minnesota will suspend for 30 days the driver's license of anyone convicted of fueling and fleeing, reported the St. Paul Pioneer Press. It's a measure designed to curb gas thefts, which rob the average Minnesota station of hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars per year.

The measure comes just after a springtime drive-off blitz that saw incidence of the crime rise by 30 percent statewide.

The suspension, which would come on top of the usual misdemeanor criminal penalties, won't make the tough job of prosecuting gas thefts any easier. But advocates say it will be more effective than the minor fines being meted out.

``It's not a fantasy bill, but hopefully it will deter a significant number of people,'' said state Rep. Keith Ellison, the Minneapolis Democrat who wrote the legislation that became part of an omnibus crime bill signed into law June 2.

Minnesota's 3,200 stations lose about $2.4 million per year -- or about $750 each -- to drive-offs, according to information provided by the Minnesota Service Station Association.

National industry officials say, however, that urban stations lose much more than rural ones, and that nationwide the average amount lost last year was $2,141 per store.

Take Ted Brausen, owner of three Shell stations in Shoreview, Arden Hills and Roseville. Last year he wrote off $4,000 to drive-offs.

But he said safety is an even bigger issue. Some thieves simply drop the nozzle -- still running -- and race off, he said, leaving a gas puddle that could go up in flames.

Gas prices peaked this spring at about $2.25 a gallon, prompting the spike in drive-offs, said Lance Klatt, executive director of the state station association.

``As the price of gasoline goes up, so does theft,'' Klatt told the paper.

Prices and thefts have tapered off in the last few weeks, he said, but with future increases likely, “you could really see [the theft rate] coming back up again.''

Why not just make customers pay before pumping, as is often done in other states and large cities?

Minnesota industry officials say their customers hate the inconvenience and may never make a trip into a station's convenience store. In a business where owners supposedly make only a penny or two in profit per gallon of gas -- and much more on a candy bar or soda -- that solution won't really help, they say.

The new law is not the first time that the Minnesota Legislature has tried to solve the drive-off problem. In 2001, it passed a law that enabled pump owners to go after nonpayers through civil court -- an easier alternative to criminal prosecution.

That's because even though gas theft is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, it's difficult to catch thieves and prosecute them. Considering the hassle and relatively low amount stolen per theft, police tend to consider drive-offs a low priority.

``They're very difficult to deal with,'' said Oakdale Police Capt. William Hutton.

And thieves know they'll rarely get pounded when they're caught. Klatt said first-time offenders usually pay a $30 fine plus the cost of the gas.

Ellison said he proposed the bill after seeing one ``cavalier'' offender pop up time and again in court.

``He did it way more times than he got caught,'' Ellison said. ``He thought it was funny.''

Losing a driver's license for a month, however, is going to get thieves' attention by putting “a crimp in their style,'' Ellison said. And they'll get fair warning once stations put up decals notifying them of the penalty.

Jason Nodean, manager of Kellie's Corner on Oakdale's Geneva Avenue, thinks it's a good idea. His deadbeats tend to be in their 20s and “get slapped on the wrist'' whenever they're caught -- but ``they'd be afraid of losing their license,'' he said.

In 1998, Georgia became the first state to suspend licenses in drive-off cases, and now more than half the nation -- including Wisconsin -- does so. Industry representatives in Georgia and Wisconsin say their anecdotal reports indicate it has helped reduce the crime, though they could not provide statistics.