Drivers so caught up in the chaos at petrol stations have been filling their tanks up with the wrong fuel, breakdown services have reported.
More than five times more people than usual are believed to have mistakenly put diesel in their petrol engine (or the other way round).
The AA said it had attended 250 incidents over the weekend compared to a mere 20-25 on an average day.
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Putting the wrong fuel in your tank can cause serious problems with the engine, The Guardian has reported.
In advice online, the RAC warns motorists to leave the engine switched off and avoid putting your key in the ignition and push the car to a safe place.
Drivers then need to call a breakdown company to drain the engine.
AA president, Edmund King, said: “Drivers also need to be careful because this weekend we have seen a dramatic rise in misfuelling compared to last weekend.
"This in turn unnecessarily reduces the fuel available as the whole tank has to be drained before refilling with the correct fuel.”
He added: “For the vast majority of drivers there is no need to rush to the pumps, and we urge people to only fill up when essential.
"There is no need to top up ‘just in case’.”
