​We asked one of our customers to share their experience of putting the wrong fuel in their vehicle and how they found the whole experience, sometimes when you're stuck in the middle of nowhere in your vehicle and need help, it's not so bad when you're in a camper van. Here's a story about one family that needed our help and thanks to Alex and family for writing this article for us.

"Many people say that it won't happen to them until it happens to them, we laugh at others that accidentally put the wrong fuel in their cars but when it's you, you realise how much you need help and that feeling of helplessness and the punch in the stomach when you realise you've done something stupid!

We set off for our Scotland adventure and hired a campervan for the first time and we were all excited about hitting the highlands and the lowlands for 10 days to get out their in the countryside. We set off early morning from Manchester and headed up the M6 towards Glasgow with a full tank of diesel, according to our guy we were told that we could expect to get 300 miles on the tank which was more than enough to get us to our destination up to Fort William on the east coast of Scotland. 

We stopped off at Loch Lomond on the way and then set off the next morning further north to where the lowlands met the highlands and got as far as Lochbroom Filling Station when we decided that we should fill the camper back up ready for the next leg of our journey touring the islands off the east coast. It was a complete blonde moment when my husband asked me to fill up while he sorted the bike racks and took the children into the cafe nearby and being so used to putting petrol in my car, I picked up the green nozzle and just began filling. I didn't even notice, I filled the tank up completely and even went in and paid still unknowing as to what I had done!

We moved the camper van to the other side of the forecourt while we had some dinner in the restaurant and it turned over fine, there were no issues whatsoever and we still hadn't realised my error. Then, when we set off again we began to notice weird signs that we had put the wrong fuel in the tank, the acceleration felt jumpy and the camper van didn't feel responsive, after 30 seconds it began to jump and my husband decided to rev the engine a little which seemed to make things worse and so decided to pull over, right there in the middle of nowhere around 9pm.

I remember the sinking feeling when my husband asked me what fuel I put in, it was that moment that I realised I had filled up the tank - and a very big tank at that with petrol!  We sat there for a moment and thought about what we could do when I remembered a friend of mine back in Manchester had mentioned Fuel Doctor when she had also filled her car up with wrong fuel so I googled (with very poor reception) and managed to get the phone number and called them and that's when we knew were going to be ok. The lady on the phone assured me that they had a fuel doctor in the area that could be with us in 2 hours, which is amazing considering where we were so in true British style we put the kettle on and played cards with the kids while we awaited our knight in shining armour.

We received a call from an amazing man called Gerry and that he would be with us within 20 minutes which was great news and ahead of time too, he parked up the van next to the camper, then he found the petrol tank and placed his nozzle thing in the tank and began to drain, it was so quick, we offered a quick cup of tea and thanked him profusely and within 20 minutes he had drained the fuel from our camper and added £10 worth of diesel which was enough to get us back to the filling station where we had come from so we can fill it back up again.

We thought we might have ruined the engine but Gerry was great, he assured us that by turning the engine on without turning it over it would flush out the wrong fuel and let the diesel run through and even added some lubricant. He then began to turn the engine over and after around 4-5 times of trying it sparked into life with a lot of smoke but this died down after a minute or two and we knew we would be ok. 

Gerry didn't stop there though, he then followed us back to the filling station to make sure we got there safely! Sometimes people are amazing and go beyond and we are so made up with Gerry for this.

When we got back to the filling station, it was closed until the morning so we parked up at the side, setup the beds and made hey until the morning. We spent the night at a filling station in the middle of the highlands but it was all part of the adventure, we laughed it off and got on with our holiday. 

Every time I fill up now, I make a point of thinking about what I am putting in my car!

We thought we would ask some of our customers what it was like for them when you used our fuel drain service and asked them to write some words on their experience. Many customers already write their reviews and experiences of our national fuel drain service on our customer review page and you can go ahead and visit that link to see what people think day in day out when using our wrong fuel recovery service.

In this instance, Mrs Dyson wrote in to us to explain her situation and how our service literally helped her life!

"We were rushing about as usual getting the kids ready for school and I noticed I was low on fuel, I knew I had enough to get the kids to school and to the garage so I decided to do the school run first so they wouldn't be late then head over to the garage to fill up. I was due to tender for a new contract we had been working on in Derby as we work in a local mental health charity.

Well, I was rushing thinking of my pitches and what we were going to be discussing in the meeting when I realised after already adding over 30 litres of petrol in my diesel car. I was day dreaming and realised it was the green hose and not the black hose! I panicked and got my phone out to call the AA but a friend of mine said to try Fuel Doctor as they would be a lot cheaper and get the job done. I called and a lovely person on the end of the phone assured me my car will be fine as I worried about the engine now, which was nice.

I got help to push the car off the forecourt and sat in the car feeling a bit daft. Without a lie, 30 minutes flashed by and Dan turned up, my knight in a shiny van and straight away began to hook up the drain system to my car and began emptying the fuel. He was very friendly, prompt and knew I was in a rush so just got on with the job in hand which was great. Literally 20 minutes later, the car started, he ran the fuel through the engine and I paid on my card right there and then - job done"

Best thing, I was spending the half hour going through my notes for the impending meeting and made a few changes - the tender was eventually accepted so I guess Fuel Doctor helped us out in more than one way!

However, honestly, really professional, friendly, calm and relaxed service - speedy but without compromise to service. If you ever have a brunette moment like I did, give them a call"

This hybrid car really doesnt want petrol in the fuel tank, but Mr Johnson made the error in Elland Halifax and had the foresight to not start the engine. We received the call and were out to see him within 30 minutes and he was back on the road within the hour.

Mr Johnson said this of our service

"I have never put the wrong fuel in my car in over 30 years of driving and was astounded when I did, I knew about Fuel Doctor from a friend and their service was brilliant. I won't lie, I was slightly embarrased, but James told me that it happens to many many people - so I laughed it off. Thanks Fuel Doctor!"

Here's a picture of the car in question and us performing the Fuel Drain in Halifax Yorkshire.

Another happy satisfied customer that put the wrong fuel in the car. We strive for excellent standards every time and it seems we have got it right again here.

"Thanks to Gerry from Fuel Doctor Glasgow who came to my rescue last night. Excellent service, responded within 20 minutes and couldn't have been more helpful. Would highly recommend this company."

Fuel Doctor pride themselves on giving first class fuel drains all over the UK and it makes our day when we get first class testimonials like this. We know the situation is rubbish when you put the wrong fuel in your car, but we endeavour to make sure we get you on the road fast so you have less time to dwell on it!