Police Misfuelling Costs Almost £100,000 per Year

Over 2,100 instances of police officers placing the wrong fuel in automobiles have been recorded since 2011
Police forces in great britain have spent almost £400,000 in the last five years on fixing their fleets after policemen filled patrol cars with the incorrect fuel, according to an exclusive Auto Express investigation.
Since 2011, there have been 2,147 episodes of an officer placing the wrong fuel in their vehicle while on duty – more than one every day. And the issue is getting worse, with the amounts in the 2015 financial year the maximum of the last five based on our Freedom of Information request.
The mistake has cost forces a collective £390,061 to fix misfuelled vehicles – at an average of £181.68 each time. Forces spent a total of £378million on fuel in the past five years, meaning £1 is spent on fixing a misfuelled vehicle for every £970 spent on diesel or petrol.
The force with the largest repair invoice was the Metropolitan Police, although it’s additionally leading of the table for the sum spent on fuel (£64.6m), given its enormous fleet. But taking fuel spend into account, Warwickshire is the worst offender, spending £1 on repairs for every £331.99 on fuel.
Some forces have’t racked up any misfuelling mistakes, though, and both the Greater Manchester Police and Northern Ireland forces have bunkered fuel sites with pre-programmed keys to make certain the right kind of fuel is dispensed.
AA spokesman Luke Bosdet said authorities misfuelling automobiles represent a mere fraction of the 150,000 cases a year. He included: “It’s an annoying and avoidable error that can take a vehicle off the road and put an additional burden on extended resources.
“But it demonstrates that police officers are human like the rest of us. Anxiety and preoccupied thoughts in many cases are the cause of misfuelling errors, which fleet managers can attempt to overcome with fuel tank tagging and reminders.”
Top five UK police forces for misfuelling repair invoices
We show the forces with the largest repair invoices for misfuelled automobiles in the past five years. The Met Police tops the table but additionally, it spends the most on fuel.
1. Metropolitan Police – complete repairs £167,118.00
2. Kent – overall repairs £25,629.00
3. Derbyshire – complete repairs £16,078.53
4. Hampshire – complete repairs £14,070.64
5. Devon and Cornwall – complete repairs £13,118.00