Warning to drivers as ‘contaminated fuel’ from major petrol station causes breakdowns

An has been issued to the drivers as a major UK reported some issued with “contaminated fuel”.

Customers at the London Road BP garage in Rayleigh, Essex, began experiencing issues with their vehicles last Monday, January 6, reports .

The issue led to chaos as and businesses were left reeling after its use reportedly led to tens of vehicles breaking down.

Due to the seriousness of the issue, the authorities was pushed to close the garage on Tuesday before it re-opened the following day after isolating the contaminated fuel pump.

According to the owners BP, an investigation has been opened to look into the incident, with the spokesperson for the company also disclosing that the affected fuel tank had now been found.

The spokesperson told MailOnline: “We are taking steps to assess the potential impact and determine the number of people who may be affected.

“Any customers with concerns should contact our careline for support – .”

A local contaminated fuel expert believes though that the issue is down to the petrol somehow mixing with water.

Lee Pretlove, owner of emergency fuel draining service FuelOut, claimed his company had experienced its busiest week in years responding to calls from the BP garage’s customers.

Mr Pretlove said he had dealt with 40 impacted motorists between Monday and Friday, but suspects up to 100 people could have used the faulty station pump.

Speaking to Essex, the repair worker revealed that one customer had seen five of his vans break down on the same day due to the contaminated fuel.

He said: “He had none of his vans going to work that day, so, as you can imagine, he was quite upset.”

Mr Pretlove also warned that some motorists may face “massive bills” when dealing with contaminated fuel, due to the likely need for new plugs and fuel filters.