talizman

iTrader: (1)

Yesterday, whilst filling up at my local petrol station, a purple Porche Boxster pulls in at the next pump.

The driver gets out and his mobile rings.

Now instead of ending the call, like most of us would do, he answers it, standing next to 8 active fuel pumps, all delivering fuel.

He is obviously so full of his own self importance that he had to answer the call. Plonker.

He walked to the back of his car, and to his (little) credit, he did not start fuelling his own car. Yet.

I tried to get his attention but he couldn't hear me/ignored me.

Anyway, I went in and paid for my fuel and said to the cashier, "You might want to tell the idiot on pump 7 to get off the phone"

She duly tannoyed to him, but again, no response. (important call obviously )

I went back to the car, to find him this time FUELLING his car whils holding the phone to his ear!!!!

As I approached, another chap went up to him and spoke to him, at which point he ended the call.

I shouted at him, slightly losing it now..... "you've been on it for about 5 minutes, are you trying to kill us all?"

To which he replied.....
"whats it got to do with you?"

Arrrrgggghhhhhhhh

Bloody arsehole!

I could have torn him a new gob at that rate.

"Whats it got to do with me"?

I'm the bloody closest to him, and its me that'll get it first if it went **** up, thats what!

What a complete ****.

A selfish, inconsiderate, irresponsible tosser!

Another rant over.

Brendan Hughes

What's your problem? My wife told a woman to stop SMOKING as she was filling up - and was told to "**** off you stupid Chinese foreigner!"

If I'd have been there I would have emptied a fire extinguisher onto the bitch. And then probably thrown it at her head for good measure.

ajm

My Dad actually saw someone drive into a petrol station with their car on fire!! They then got out the car and stood there swearing at it Basil Fawlty style! My old man emptied the contents of a fire extinguisher all over the car and the bloke was giving it "wtf are you doing?!"

Some people

Nevetas

Remember the top gear test, where they covered a shed in petrol and then put 50 mobiles in it and rang on the phones at once. Nothing happened.

AFAIK there has only ever been 1 recoreded incident of a mobile causing a fire, and that case it wasn't proven it was a mobile that did it.

Youve probably got more chance of slamming a door to hard and causing a spark.

But rules are rules, and the gay boy shouldn't be on his phone, he deserved a dry slap!

LG John

I really don't see what you are getting so up tight about - do you REALLY believe mobiles near a fuel pump are any risk at all. You've more chance of dropping your keys on the ground and causing a spark IMHO

ProperCharlie

as above - odds are millions to 1 against anything happening to the bloke who's on the phone - let alone anyone else.

Butty

iTrader: (2)

If mobiles are such a risk then why do petrol stations have mobile phone masts hidden in their roadside signs?
Perhaps its more of a question of inattentiveness - answering a phone whilst not paying attention to sloshing fuel around or driving into a pump set.

Nick

gareth123

There's little risk of a mobile igniting vapour at a petrol station, you're more likely to do it yourself with static.

Although I hate people making calls while filling up, only because they tend to dawdle (because they're on the phone) - their call obviously being more important than the people also waiting to fuel their cars.

Dapster

Equally - do mobiles really "interfere with aircraft systems" or is that just a rouse to stop 255 people shouting down their respective dog's for the entire duration of the flight? I can not imagine that if there was even a billionth of a chance that a phone left on would cause the plane any grief, you'd be allowed one within a mile of the airport.

Can you imagine the 737 touching down in Cairo on autopilot with the Captain tapping the screen with his finger saying "I'm sure I typed in "Heathrow"? Oh Dave, have you left your phone on again?"

CHRIS_D

errrrr...................

was in walderslade (kent) sainsburys petrol station a couple of years back (didnt have the scoob then BTW)

Anyway, whilst i was waiting to pay for my fuel i noticed a big poster of a very burnt out petrol station, inc burnt out cars etc. - it was caused by someone using a mobile phone.

Sorry - but i wont be taking any chances - i'd of given the 'gay bar loitering' porsche boxster owner a slap TBH

chris

Dracoro

If you ever see someone smoking in a petrol station then inform them of their stupidity and if that doesn't stop them then find an extinguisher or some water (buy some in the station if need be) and throw it over them.

Spoon

The only reason mobile phones are deemed dangerous at petrol pumps is simply because it's something else that you have in your hands that you can potentially drop onto the floor causing a spark.

As said earlier, you have as much chance of dropping your keys but at least if people think it's something to do with the phones transmission they will try and limit the risk by only having their keys to worry about.

SiDHEaD

There is a risk from mobiles BUT its due to people DROPPING THEM. This can cause a spark as the battery breaks free. Calls are not really a problem.

Andy

S.B.

It was probably image doctor

hades

If you think about it, there are quite a few more dangerous things that go into petrol stations, which are easiily capable of igniting fuel vapour. Like hot exhausts, car ignition systems etc. How many times have you had a go at someone for not cleaning their HT leads, which can cause arcing which is more likely to ignite fuel? Or starting their car at a pump - how big a spark happens inside the starter solenoid?

And how many times have you asked new mini drivers whether their car has been done on it's recall - IIRC the early ones were recalled as the filler pipe on the car accumulated static, creating a spark to the nozzle!

Admittedly, if there are rules and the guy is clearly breaking them, he shouldn't be such a t055er when told about it. However, as for killing people - MUCH more likely to do that than when driving than when using a mobile in the petrol station.

hades

P.S. Mobiles can however interfere with electronics. I've seen a plain digital cordless phone mess up the reading from an Electronic Personal Dosemeter (kind of a high tech version of a film badge - measures whether you're getting radiation dose). If I'd got the radiation it told me I was getting when the phone rang, I'd be dead by now!

Tiggs

lol- prob a porshe forum somewhere where bloke is saying "i was minding my own business when some nut in a subaru started waving his arms and telling me i was an exposion risk"

talizman

iTrader: (1)

Well guys, I'm certainly more clued up now regards use of phones near petrol pumps than I was when I started this thread, but my rant was basically due to my lack of knowledge on the subject and the associated fear from said lack of knowledge!

Either way, I do not believe for one minute that the ignorant tw@t was aware that he wasn't causing an un-neccessary risk, and that he was simply being pig headed.

Having said that, I also remember the advert listed above with the picture of burnt out petrol station caused by mobile phone allegedly. Powerful image and had certainly left an impression on me.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Just think a Boxster owner combusting, do you think he would go up in a poof of smoke ?

The real reason for not being on your mobile is that people get p1ssed of waiting for the pumps.

OllyK

Mobiles by petrol stations, no great risk, ciggies and diesel aren't a problem either, we used to sit on the diesel tank at work for a *** when I worked for a haulage firm, never managed to blow the thing up. Petrol as a liquid is not an issue either, you can put a *** out by dropping it in a fuel tank, you have to be damn quick so that it doesn't light the vapour above, but the liquid itself is pretty inoffensive, unless you want to bathe in it and get cancer.

yoza

He may have been like me.

I didnt know you could cause a spark with a mobile, now I do.
Did you not think maybe he was unaware of the danger.

Not that I pay much notice, but are there signs in a petrol station saying no mobiles, Ive never seen them.

talizman

iTrader: (1)

Pardon the cliche, but ignorance is not an excuse, not to mention that his reaction on being chinned made it apparent that he was perfectly aware of the "dangers".


Only on just about every petrol pump!

icantthinkofone

And why? Because they need to cover their *** for litigation in the extremely unlikely event that a place goes up and someone manages to prove a causal link however tenuous, the relatives can't sue the petrol station for negligence.

Personally I think we should ban people in shell suits, far more of a danger.. For that matter, how often do you get a shock off the car getting out?

yoza

Really, on every pump.

I must pay more attention, Im usually concentrating at this stage.......

Subaru Optimax, Peugeot Diesel, Subaru Optimax, Peugeot Diesel, Subaru Optimax, Peugeot Diesel........

OK what am I in ? Subaru or Peugeot ?

Subaru, right then, errrrrrm Optimax !

**** wrong pump.

Move up.......Optimax, right then, start again.

Open boot, then open petrol flap, close boot, open filler cap let it dangle against the paint work, finger on trigger, finger still on trigger, finger still on trigger, stare at cashier whilst mouthing "s t u p i d b i a t c h", getting pi55ed off.

'Hey mate you have to pay first'.

****.

I hate petrol stations.

Dracoro

I want to fill up but don't know how much it'll cost yet. How then do you 'pay first'?? Or is this paying thing a northern thing?

RichWalk

PMSL at AJM!!

fivepint

I thought the phones could interfere with the reading on the pump. ie: u could fiddle more fuel for less money?!?!

I do recall a mate leaving his phone out side over night, next morning it was very icey, rang his phone to find it in the garden, and around the ariel (sp) the ice had melted!!!

yoza

Dracoro,

It may be a Northern thing, its due to the %age of fill and burns carried out. Very forgetfull us scousers.......

matt85

AFAIK the only reason petrol companies ban you from using your phone on the forecourts is because their is a risk (at least in the old type of petrol pumps) that it can upset the mechanism that affects the price, ergo, customer may get cheap/free fuel because the meter would be screwed up. in that situation the garage will never win against the customer price-wise so they ban them just so their is no chance of it happening and of them possibly losing out. its for this reason that i often use my phone whilst filling up

i would say im more likely to be eaten by an angry beaver than start a fire with my mobile at a petrol station.

MadMark

Isn't it that the pumps are radio controlled and therefore the risk is that they won't switch off and just keep pumping if a mobile phone interferes with the signal?