The AA has launched a new roadside service which drains cars’ fuel systems after they have been incorrectly filled up.

AA Fuel Assist will drain and replenish fuel systems on the spot in less than an hour. Drivers, who realise their mistake, call the AA where an experienced technical team will assess whether the car is safe to drive to a garage or whether it needs roadside help.

The technical team, which has access to car manufacturers’ details, will decide whether the incorrect fuel might have got into the engine or cause further problems to the vehicle.

In such an instance, after the vehicle has been drained, the AA might take the car to a dealer for examination, dependent on the client’s wishes.

AA Fuel Assist, a 1.7 million investment, recycles the contaminated fuel through a waste management company, with the end product being used to power cement kilns and furnaces.

An estimated £750 million is wasted through misfuelling each year. It is most common for diesel engines to be filled with petrol rather than vice-versa, because unleaded petrol nozzles are smaller and diesel filler necks tend to be wider.

The number of motorists putting the wrong fuel in their car has doubled over the last ten years to 150,000, according to the AA. Growing diesel car sales and modern diesels being so quiet that people sometimes forget they’re driving one are blamed for the increase.

More people also own more than one car, which increases confusion.

Donald MacSporran, AA technical performance manager said: “We came up with this unique service that gets 99%t of vehicles back on the road after the 45-minute fuel drain.”