Breakdown Problem
Wrong Fuel in the Tank — Stop, Don't Start the Engine
Misfuelling is the one breakdown where what you do in the next sixty seconds decides whether it costs a drain or an engine. If the key hasn't been turned, the wrong fuel is sitting in the tank and nowhere else. Once the engine runs, it's through the pump, the lines and the injectors.
What you're likely seeing
- You realise at the pump, before starting — best case by a long way
- Engine started then ran rough, smoked heavily and cut out
- Loss of power and heavy knocking shortly after leaving the forecourt
- Petrol in a diesel: rough running then a hard stop. Diesel in a petrol: misfire, smoke, refusal to run
Do this before anything else
- 1Do not turn the ignition on. Even the ignition position primes the fuel pump on many cars.
- 2Put the handbrake on, leave it in neutral and tell the forecourt staff — most stations will help push the car to a bay.
- 3Keep the receipt. Some insurers and most misfuelling cover policies will want proof of what went in.
On a motorway or dual carriageway, ring 999 and ask for National Highways before you call any recovery company. Motorway breakdown advice →
How we move the vehicle
We collect the car on a flatbed so nothing is being driven through the fuel system, and take it either to a mobile fuel-drain specialist or to your garage. If the engine was run, the vehicle needs the tank draining plus fuel-line and filter work, which is a workshop job rather than a forecourt job.
What it costs
The recovery cost is the same whether you started the engine or not — the difference is in the repair bill afterwards, which is why we ask you not to turn the key. Many comprehensive policies and standalone misfuelling cover will reimburse both.
Full recovery cost guideQuestions we get asked
The service you probably need
Other problems we're called to
Tell us what the car is doing
Describe the fault on the phone and we'll tell you honestly whether this is a roadside fix or a recovery — and what it will cost — before a driver leaves.