Calm Yourselves!

[HCHQ]

Just back from putting air in the car tyres and the queue into the forecourt for fuel was ridiculous.

Appreciate it doesn't help that the news bulletins start with" BP closes some petrol stations" and that nobody hears beyond this to "Asda, Morrisons and other supermarkets are saying they have no problems, as have other petrol companies.”

Just stop it.

@Gimlisaxe

On a different note, there is a petrol station near DS' school, I wonder how bad that is going to be on the school run.

Allow plenty of time if you can. I got stuck in a very long tail back this morning. Not huge queue for the service station but it's on a rural road where there are also cars parked on one side. So there is always a bit of stop and go to get round those as it makes the road one lorry wide at that point. Coupled with two or three cars waiting, the tail back was about 3 miles long, and took me 40 mins

@Claudethecat but all the things that matter most to me (fresh fruit veg and meat and eggs, fuel, Bread and milk) you can’t stock up!
I did the whole stocking up thing before covid came but quickly realised that actually I wasn’t that desperate for long life milk, tinned peaches and canned vegetables and they all went to the food bank.
Toilet roll came in handy and maybe 1 or 2 other things but apart from that , not really!

@Joystir59

I always fill my tank when it gets down to half. That's become my habit ever since Brexit and Covid became part of our lives. I also keep food and toilets paper and other essentials in stock. That's become my norm.

Likewise. Good sense!

I filled up this morning because I was empty and use my car to do my job. Petrol station was empty, I was literally the only one there 🤷‍♀️

@Sofiegiraffe you panic buy fuel by buying it when you don’t really need it. Those people sitting in queues can’t possibly all desperately need fuel. They are panicking and buying because everyone else is, thus creating a shortage because this many people do not normally fill up in one day.

[quote Silverswirl]@Claudethecat but all the things that matter most to me (fresh fruit veg and meat and eggs, fuel, Bread and milk) you can’t stock up!
I did the whole stocking up thing before covid came but quickly realised that actually I wasn’t that desperate for long life milk, tinned peaches and canned vegetables and they all went to the food bank.
Toilet roll came in handy and maybe 1 or 2 other things but apart from that , not really![/quote]
Very true. That's why after the first lockdown, I started getting milk deliveries and a veg box delivery (including eggs) as I knew we'd have more lockdowns. Although it is all more expensive than the supermarket I have decided to keep on with them just in case things go to shit yet again.

I was having a little rant to DP earlier about the news coverage. Last night they showed a village somewhere where the BP has to close and it's the only petrol station in the village. Interviewed several people who hadn't been able to get fuel, implying these people will be in deep doo doo if they can't fill up.

At the end of the feature I shit you not, the reporter mentioned that there was another petrol station "just a few miles away"!! So a totally pointless story just designed to whip up panic then. FFS.

Thank needed you fill my car this morning as the fuel light was n and I can't work without my car. Some numbnut in front of me filled his car up and also the 5 Jerry cans in his boot!

We will need fuel soon as we're down to 86 miles...luckily we can go a few more days so hopefully the queueing will be over

That should have said 'I needed to'!

[quote SingingCanary]@Sofiegiraffe you panic buy fuel by buying it when you don’t really need it. Those people sitting in queues can’t possibly all desperately need fuel. They are panicking and buying because everyone else is, thus creating a shortage because this many people do not normally fill up in one day.[/quote]
Anyone who is borderline low on petrol is going to go to a petrol station because the supply is uncertain. I wouldn’t call that panic buying.

I doubt it’s people who are 3/4 full going to the pumps unless they’ve got long journeys. The people in the queue today were all paying minimum £40

@ScatteredMama82

FWIW every pump at our local station was open and there were plenty cars there but no queue. It seems the good folk of rural shropshire aren't panicking just yet.

Same here. Wasn't buying petrol, but the only petrol station in town is at the supermarket, and I went in and out of the site on the exit nearest the petrol station with no issues. No queues, no hold-ups, no drama.

@FreeBritnee

People won’t quit. If they couldn’t contr themselves over toilet roll they’re sure as hell not going to risk running out of fuel.

Spot on.

I see the pictures and just think 'idiots'

As usual the usual irresponsible media and their front page headlines have done the job of causing panic.

@Katerurn

Thank needed you fill my car this morning as the fuel light was n and I can't work without my car. Some numbnut in front of me filled his car up and also the 5 Jerry cans in his boot!

I remember one time when there was a spate of petrol panic buying there were some nasty accidents as some of the numbskulls filling up cans had no idea how to store petrol safely.

I just looked at sky news and its wall to wall depressing with petrol stations jammed all over the country. I hope this fuckery doesn't go on all week as I do patient home visits across a huge area and need to get petrol.

Stellaris22.

Im totally reliant on my car. The bus service in our city is so dire and getting more so by the day. If I had to rely on it to get to work I’d be fired. It’s a daily occurrence for multiple cancellations, ridiculous delays and as a result it often takes over 2 hours to get somewhere it should take 25 mins to get to. And that’s on a rammed bus because the cancellations and delays mean massive queues. It’s a bloody nightmare. Our council is running a competition for members of the public to suggest ways to make the bus service better. There’s a prize of 2k for the winner. It’s such a joke you couldn’t make it up 🙈. I’d love to get rid of my car which is old and rusty and use public transport but it’s not a realistic option right now.

My nearest petrol station was also sold out of petrol when I drove past at 10 am.

I bought my monthly full tank yesterday, as I always have to make sure I have plenty as I'm disabled & we live 6 miles away from DC school. For some of us, no fuel would mean completely housebound and no school! We don't all have husbands and/or family to help out. Although I haven't joined any queues myself, I suspect SOME of those panic buying are genuinely panicking because they know some are being greedy & inconsiderate.

I was listening to LBC earlier and they had a reporter on location, interviewing petrol station staff and actually asking them if "the media" were to blame - the irony!!! 😂

Roads are gridlocked here due to queues for fuel. We have three petrol stations, two this side of town opposite each other and one the other side of town.

Each with the capacity to completely block the road system. Car staying on the drive for the forseeable.

[quote SingingCanary]@Sofiegiraffe you panic buy fuel by buying it when you don’t really need it. Those people sitting in queues can’t possibly all desperately need fuel. They are panicking and buying because everyone else is, thus creating a shortage because this many people do not normally fill up in one day.[/quote]

Fair enough, this does make sense. My confusion was more about the fact that there is a limit to the amount of fuel everyone can fit in their cars. Once they are full, they can't buy anymore. Which, to me, made the toilet roll comparison a bit silly because you can continue to buy those all day long if you're so inclined.

Hope I run out of fuel …… won’t be going to work ………bonus 🙂

It’s ridiculous… absolute chaos here in Scotland.. roads are blocked with cars and two petrol stations have closed as they are out of fuel. I filled up on Tuesday as I usually do when I get paid.. thank goodness.. what a disaster I hope emergency services don’t suffer 😱

I remember one time when there was a spate of petrol panic buying there were some nasty accidents as some of the numbskulls filling up cans had no idea how to store petrol safely.

Was this the muppet in Derby who filled three wheelie bins with petrol, stored in his house? Then the petrol dissolved the base of the bin, contaminating the entire row of houses and requiring them to be evacuated because of the explosion risk?

My confusion was more about the fact that there is a limit to the amount of fuel everyone can fit in their cars. Once they are full, they can't buy anymore

Tell that to the plonkers filling up multiple Jerry cans.

I must live in the only sane part of the country. No queues here.