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Going to the garage to fill up
your car with petrol is common occurrence. Most people will visit
the pumps on average once a week to refuel and the physical actions
involved in this process often become automatic. However sometimes
it can go wrong if you don’t pick up the right pump and the
incorrect fuel is added to the tank. Every year around 150,000
people accidentally put the wrong type of fuel into their vehicles.
While you may think that this does not sound like a lot, it equates
to someone misfuelling around once every three minutes.
There are a number of reasons
why people misfuel and the problem is on the rise, with misfuelling
incidents having increased over the last five years. Some people
believe that one of the reasons could be due to the technical
developments in diesel cars which means they now run a lot quieter
than they once did. People who switch from driving a petrol car to a
diesel may not remember they have done so until too late when
misfuelling has occurred. In addition if you happen to be driving a
different car to your normal vehicle, such as a hire car or a
company car then you may not remember that you need to change your
automatic actions and reach for another pump.
The bad news is that if you do
misfuel it can cause significant damage to your car, especially if
you start the engine and begin to drive the vehicle. A vehicle that
has been misfuelled will not be able to drive for long and could
become a danger on the roads. In the worst case scenario the engine
may be damaged so badly that it needs to be completely replaced,
leaving you with a costly repair bill.
On the other hand, if you
realise your mistake you can go someway to repairing the damage.
Don’t start the engine or turn the ignition on, as this will cause
the fuel to circulate through the engine and cause damage. If you
have only introduced a very small amount of the wrong fuel to your
tank you may be able to fill up with the correct fuel and have no
problems as long as you don’t start the engine until the correct
fuel has been added, unless the car manufacturer advises otherwise.
However, if your car is under
warranty you should contact your dealer to check whether this action
would affect the policy. If you have misfuelled with more than 10%
of the total tank capacity then the tank will need to be completely
drained and cleaned before refueling and driving.
Draining the tank can be a complex task and should only be handled
by a professional. Some breakdown services or car
insurance policies offer a misfuelling service as part of their
packages. Be sure to check the terms and conditions to see whether
this service is included. Remember that if you do misfuel, the
implications can be minimized if the correct actions are taken.
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