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* 'It's crazy,' driver says at gas station
* Army tanker drivers to be deployed if needed
* Trucker shortage has hit supply chains
* Some signs problem is easing - minister
* Retailers caution about Christmas supply
(Updates with Petrol Retailers Association latest)
By Michael Holden, Ben Makori and James Davey
LONDON, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Britain's transport minister
pleaded with motorists on Tuesday to refrain from filling up old
water bottles with fuel at gas stations after panic buying left
pumps dry across major cities and prompted the government to put
the army on standby.
British drivers hunted for hours or sat snarled in queues to
fill their tanks; dozens of forecourts were closed with signs
saying they had no petrol or diesel, Reuters reporters said.
A post-Brexit shortage of truck drivers, exacerbated by a
halt to truck-driving-licence testing during COVID lockdowns and
people leaving the haulage industry, has sown chaos through
supply chains, raising the spectre of shortages and price rises
in the run up to Christmas.
Britain put a limited number of military tanker drivers on a
state of readiness to be deployed to deliver fuel if necessary.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said there were some hints
the situation was easing as reserves at some gas stations had
been replenished.
"We're starting to see very tentative signs of stabilisation
which won't yet be reflected in the queues," he told reporters.
"The sooner we all return to our normal buying habits, the
quicker this gets resolved - and I do appeal to the public to do
that. In particular, no more water bottles at petrol stations:
its dangerous and not helpful."
Fights broke out at some English petrol stations as drivers
jostled for fuel and pictures on social media showed some people
filling up old water bottles with fuel.
There have also been growing calls for medics, healthcare
staff and other essential workers to be given priority to fill
their cars to keep hospitals and social care services
running.
An air of chaos has gripped the world's fifth largest
economy in recent weeks as the shortage of truckers strained
supply chains and a spike in European wholesale natural gas
prices tipped energy companies into bankruptcy.
Retailers, truck drivers and logistics companies have warned
that prices for everything from energy to Christmas gifts will
have to rise.
"I can't believe it - it's crazy," said David Scade, a
33-year-old delivery driver who drove for hours searching for
fuel in London.
"They keep saying there is no shortage but I suppose
everyone is panicking now," said Scade who was filling up at a
Shell gas station in London.
STILL QUEUING
The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), which represents
independent fuel retailers who account for 65% of all the 8,380
UK forecourts, said many sites had run dry, but the situation
did appear to be slowly improving.
"There is still a bit of panic buying, there's still
queuing, but we are hopeful that we are seeing the first signs
of a move towards equilibrium," PRA chairman Brian Madderson
told Sky News.
"It's the big urban centres on the mainland in England which
seem to have this problem of higher than average demand."
The government on Sunday announced a plan to issue temporary
visas for 5,000 foreign truck drivers. But some Polish hauliers
said that offer was laughable and that few would be likely to
take it up.
Hauliers, petrol stations and retailers say there are no
quick fixes as the shortfall of truck drivers - estimated at
about 100,000 - was so acute, and because transporting fuel
demands additional training and licensing.
Ministers want businesses relying on truck drivers to pay
more and offer better conditions, rather than count on cheap
foreign labour. But, hauliers and other businesses say that can
only be a long-term fix, while in the meantime it will mean
prices increasing and the risk of a prolonged rise in inflation.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) urged the government to
broaden the size and scope of the visa scheme to attract the
truckers needed to keep Christmas supplies on track.
"It will take many months before there are enough new
British drivers to cover the shortfall," said Andrew Opie,
director of food and sustainability at the BRC.
(Writing by Michael Holden and Guy Faulconbridge; editing by
Alistair Bell and Philippa Fletcher)
