Motorists urged to beware cheap fuel

Motorists should be wary of diesel and petrol bargains that appear to be good to be true, as it may be illegally laundered fuel which could damage your car.

With rising petrol and diesel prices, and two raids on illegal fuel-laundering plants already this year, Revenue have announced a crackdown on fuel-laundering.

A litre of petrol now costs an average of 161.1 cents, while the cost of a litre of diesel is now 157.7 — a rise of 7.2% since the start of the year.

The most recent raid on a fuel-laundering plant in Cavan uncovered an operation with the capacity of producing 10 million litres of fuel per year, at a cost of €5m to Revenue. Illegal fuel-laundering costs the Government in excess of €150m every year in lost tax revenue.

Fuel-laundering plants generally add extremely high levels of methanol to petrol, instead of the 3% permitted under EU regulations.

Senior customs officer with Revenue Michael McGill said it was targeting a number of “suspect sites” around the country as part of a crackdown.

Mr McGill said methanol was a highly corrosive substance that would cause damage to car engines, depending on the levels of methanol used.

He also pointed out that the problem was not just confined to the border areas.

“We have detected this in counties such as Donegal, Mayo, Roscommon, Cavan, Monaghan, Limerick, Tipperary and Dublin, so it is a national problem,” he said.

Revenue also believe that the criminal gangs at the centre of this activity are in control of 100 retail outlets throughout the country and advised consumers to use branded, trustworthy fuel retailers.

“Go to your branded, high-street outlets. There you are sure of the product you are getting. You are getting the genuine product. I would say even if it is a cent or two cheaper on those outlets [illicit sellers], in the long run it is not cheaper. It will cost you more to keep your car on the road. I would be suspicious of bargains,” warned Mr McGill.