Police put wrong fuel in cars nearly 300 times

The errors cost taxpayers more than £50,000 in repairs last year

Police officers mistakenly filled patrol cars with the wrong type of fuel nearly 300 times in 2017 – at a cost of more than £50,000 in repairs.

The TaxPayers’ Alliance described the figures, released after a Freedom of Information investigation by the Press Association, as “staggering”.

Of the UK’s 45 police forces, 40 responded and 33 admitted paying out for repairs to a police vehicle after a misfuelling incident last year – at an average cost of £178 a time.

Some 299 incidents of misfuelling were recorded, costing a total of £53,337.

West Midlands Police recorded the most incidents – 66, at a cost of £3,737.

The Met Police had 49 incidents, costing £17,589.57 in total to repair, while Police Scotland had 16, costing £2,004.92.

John O’Connell, chief executive of pressure group the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “It’s staggering that such a simple mistake is being made almost daily.

“This careless attitude shows a lack of respect for those same taxpayers who both pay their wages and are forced to pay for the repairs.

“Millions of people manage this task with their own cars by taking a modicum of care – police officers should extend the same courtesy to their vehicles.”

West Midlands Police fleet manager Gary Mallett said mistakes increased after 2013 when the force moved away from internal fuel sites and fuel keys to external fuel stations in a cost-cutting exercise. He said: “We saw a major spike in the number of misfuels in 2013-14 and addressed this by notifying users and local vehicle leads of the volume and cost of the mistake.

“We also labelled all vehicles with the fuel type as a reminder of the correct fuel that should be used.

“This has had a positive effect, with around a 53% reduction in the number of misfuels, but more importantly around a 90% reduction in actual cost of repairs.

“We put out regular reminders to staff, and this is continuing to have an impact on reducing the problem.”

A spokesman for the Met said that since 2008 its vehicles had been refuelled 1.5 million times and mistakes were “a tiny proportion of total refuelling”.

The spokesman added: “The MPS operates a mixed fleet of both petrol and diesel vehicles with a gradual move towards more petrol, hybrid and electric vehicles. Overall, the misfuelling rate is decreasing year-on-year.”

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It’s staggering that such a simple mistake is being made almost daily. JOHN O’CONNELL

Picture: Kenny Elrick. Each misfuelling incident costs an average of £178 to fix.