Is the panic buying starting up again?

[Ari]

According to my local Facebook page, a couple of petrol stations are out of fuel. Apparently people think that the Ukraine situation will mean no petrol or diesel, so they're all rushing to create another self inflicted fuel shortage.

I guess supermarket shelves will be next, the supply chain doesn't really have the flexibility for surges and as soon as they start, they become self propelled as people see empty shelves and panic buy what's left.

Anything similar happening elsewhere?

[NDA]

Ari said:

According to my local Facebook page, a couple of petrol stations are out of fuel. Apparently people think that the Ukraine situation will mean no petrol or diesel, so they're all rushing to create another self inflicted fuel shortage.

I guess supermarket shelves will be next, the supply chain doesn't really have the flexibility for surges and as soon as they start, they become self propelled as people see empty shelves and panic buy what's left.

Anything similar happening elsewhere?

Yep. Other half commented on queues at her local station in Surrey.

[rix]

I appreciate the irony of my post but I'd seen loads of FB posts about this complaining about idiots panic buying, without realising that by posting about it on social media, they are creating the issue! Happily MSM aren't reporting it yet so hopefully it won't gain any traction like it did a few months ago...

[frisbee]

Isn't it because the price is being predicted above £2/litre?

[Ari]

rix said:

Happily MSM aren't reporting it yet so hopefully it won't gain any traction like it did a few months ago...

You know they will though, in pious 'people are being urged not to...' tones.

They love a bit of fear mongering, it's good for business.

[Ari]

frisbee said:

Isn't it because the price is being predicted above £2/litre?

That's a good point. It was about Ukraine on Facebook, but I don't think a huge amount of thought had gone into it.

Hopefully it is just that, and once everyone is full and the price has done what it does, it will settle down again.

[IAmTheWalrus]

Ari said:

You know they will though, in pious 'people are being urged not to...' tones.

They love a bit of fear mongering, it's good for business.

I think the government should ban panic buying. I knew a woman who went to 5 shops for loo roll when the first coronavirus wave his and they were all sold out.

[frisbee]

Ari said:

frisbee said:

Isn't it because the price is being predicted above £2/litre?

That's a good point. It was about Ukraine on Facebook, but I don't think a huge amount of thought had gone into it.

Hopefully it is just that, and once everyone is full and the price has done what it does, it will settle down again.

But as you've said, there is no flexibility in the supply chain. The merest hint of panic and people pre-emptively fill up, which leads to the whole thing collapsing and taking some time to recover.

[Ian Geary]

Had quarter of a tank on Thursday, but by noon the Tesco garage near me had a queue running back into the car park.

Turned round and came home.

I don't want to add to the problem, and I wfh mostly so going under 1/4 isn't a biggie.

[anonymous-user]

Panic buying hasn't started. Nobody is panic buying. They're just filling up early before the panic buyers come along and leave the pumps empty.

Idiots.

[MikeM6]

Driving back from Heathrow to Lincoln in the M6 with only half a tank might be interesting tomorrow night....

[alfaracer85]

Definitely started around here (South Derbyshire) too yesterday, big queues to get onto all the supermarket forecourts I drove past. Went for a run on the bike this afternoon and the forecourts were packed again, fortunately I just wanted to check how much wind was in the tyres so didn't have to wait around.

[xx99xx]

Cyber attacks at terminals in Belgium, Netherlands and Germany a few weeks ago left them unable to load/unload fuel, despite having plenty of it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-60250956

Could be happening over here now?

[Timothy Bucktu]

JackJarvis said:

Panic buying hasn't started. Nobody is panic buying. They're just filling up early before the panic buyers come along and leave the pumps empty.

Idiots.

How ironic

[Ari]

frisbee said:

Ari said:

frisbee said:

Isn't it because the price is being predicted above £2/litre?

That's a good point. It was about Ukraine on Facebook, but I don't think a huge amount of thought had gone into it.

Hopefully it is just that, and once everyone is full and the price has done what it does, it will settle down again.

But as you've said, there is no flexibility in the supply chain. The merest hint of panic and people pre-emptively fill up, which leads to the whole thing collapsing and taking some time to recover.

Indeed, which is how the whole thing becomes a self fulfilling prophesy unfortunately.

[Ari]

xx99xx said:

Cyber attacks at terminals in Belgium, Netherlands and Germany a few weeks ago left them unable to load/unload fuel, despite having plenty of it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-60250956

Could be happening over here now?

What makes you think that?

[xx99xx]

Ari said:

xx99xx said:

Cyber attacks at terminals in Belgium, Netherlands and Germany a few weeks ago left them unable to load/unload fuel, despite having plenty of it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-60250956

Could be happening over here now?

What makes you think that?

Well primarily my assumption would be based on your reports of panic buying and others reporting queues at filling stations - oh and Russia losing the plot a little at the moment.

[V8covin]

I filled up yesterday,only because it will save me a few quid if the prices go up as predicted.

[Superleg48]

V8covin said:

I filled up yesterday,only because it will save me a few quid if the prices go up as predicted.

This statement is irrational and underlines some of the short term idiocy that prompts people to start a wave of panic buying unnecessarily.

So you saved a few quid today. Well done. Tomorrow and for the foreseeable you will pay a bit more. Over numerous fill ups the saving you made today disappears into insignificance. You see, for every time you fill up at a higher price the saving you made today as a % of your overall spend over time gets smaller and smaller.

Unless you fill up once a year or will never fill up again, your logic simply fails.

[Divieto di Sosta]

IAmTheWalrus said:

I think the government should ban panic buying.

Tell us how that would be enforced ....