Fury as drivers face huge £3,000 bills over Morrisons’s fuel pump blun | UK | News

Motorists are facing a major headache as they face car repair bills of up to £3,000 at a popular petrol station. A fuel pump mix-up at Morrisons petrol station in Tiverton, Devon, left customers unknowingly damaging their cars. It was discovered that the diesel pump dispenses gasoline and vice versa. Shortly after leaving the station, drivers experienced shocking car breakdowns.

Some, including forklift driver Graham Stevens, had to foot the bill for expensive repairs. Mr Stevens was handed a £2,800 repair bill after filling the tank of his estate Vauxhall Insignia with unleaded petrol instead of diesel.

He told BBC News: “I put in £50 of what I thought was diesel. I live just a minute away so I didn’t notice a problem at first. But when I left for work early the next morning the car started blowing up and eventually died.”

Motor Fuel Group (MFG), which owns the service station, admitted to Graham that the mistake was its responsibility. But Graham said he was instructed not to contact the company again and, despite assurances from MFG, had still not heard from his insurance provider. He added that he could not afford the necessary repairs. The supermarket chain is now facing calls to pay compensation to affected drivers.

Mr Stevens is one of many people affected by the bug.

He said: “It’s appalling. There’s no empathy, no support.

“I was lucky to have £400 in my pocket to restart the car, but I can’t afford a full repair.”

Fergus Alexander, 65, from Tiverton, said he filled his car with £70 worth of fuel, which he believed was diesel, but the car broke down a short time later and he revealed it was actually petrol.

Jamie Wilson, 24, also from Tiverton, thought he had added unleaded fuel but discovered it was diesel when his car broke down about 15 minutes later.