July 2008 Car News - GBCarLoans.com

18th July 2008

Brit drivers running on empty as fuel price hikes hit

Soaring petrol prices have caused hundreds of thousands of drivers to drive with low fuel levels, despite the risk this carries of damaging engines. According to Britannia Rescue, which offers breakdown and car insurance cover, over the last three months the number of drivers who have suffered a breakdown due to running out of fuel stands at 340,000. This represents an increase of ten per cent from the same period last year.

Evidence of the trend was also provided by a poll in which 47 per cent of motorists polled admitted they have run their car with the bare minimum of fuel. Meanwhile, in the past three months 59 per cent of the sample has allowed their fuel level to fall so low that they’ve triggered their warning light.

Emma Holyer, spokesperson for Britannia Rescue, said: "Drivers who run their car on empty are also at high risk of breaking down ;Not only is this extremely costly if you don’t have breakdown cover and also very inconvenient, running out of fuel on the roads that don’t have a hard shoulder can create major safety hazards for other drivers.

 

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