Posted By Glynn T Gibson We have a local car company who wants to display cars at one of our local INDOOR events. Empty or Full???? We have intially said that the petrol tank need to be as empty as possible!!! We also said that they need to ensure the car arrives in that state so there is no need to pump out the tank. The car company have replied that the tanks need to be full as possible as this reduces the amount of vapours due to the lack of air space??? Can anyone provide any advice or direct me to some formal guidance - thank you

Posted By Danny Swygart Try contacting someone with responsibility for safety at motor shows (NEC) for their policy / guidance / procedures.

Posted By John Murgatroyd I think the word should be "terrorist" not "anarchist" All modern cars have sealed tanks that only vent to the atmosphere when pressure rises within the fuel tank. It's another emission control measure. They are unlikely to leak, since there is a fuel cut-off that activates when the ignition is turned off.

Posted By Ian Dimbleby Please, please, please let this be a case for common sense. The car is new, I would presume, or they would not be too willing to show it. It will have passed all manufacturing standards and QA tests. It is just going to stand there and be looked at. Do all the cars in garage workshops have the petrol drained from them.. even when welding on the car.....No . Just let common sense prevail and enjoy the day.

Posted By Iain W Full, half full or with the obligatory 2 pounds worth of petrol I used to put in when I was an apprentice and it was all I could afford, either that or be tooled up to do a manual handling risk assessment !! - one , two, three - push I know where you are coming from the point of ensuring you are following any required requirements statutory or otherwise, but how would you rate the risk of a brand new car fuel tank splitting - I would suggest low. All new cars go through a PDI check too, so unless the delivery driver has driven off the wrong end of the car transporter !! I don't think it will be much of a worry Why don't you do a risk assessment and contact the company insurer for information, then make your decision after that. I know common sense doesn't necessarily prevail all the time, especially if there was some sort of incident.

Posted By Pat Burns MIOSH, RSP - SpDipEM - AMIQA If you put a lit cigarette into a full 60 litre tank of petrol it is likely to extinguish. If you put it into a lit cigarette into a partially full 60 litre tank of petrol it is likely that the vapous built up will ignite and possibly cause an explosion. (as they say in the stunt shows please do not try this) The two main risks associated here is fire and spillage therefore your risk assessment should identify the hazards that are likely to result in the incident and what preventative and protective measures are currently in place. Should additional measures be identified then they obviously have to be implemented. Factors to consider include: Current Fire Certificate for building What potentiel ignition sources are there should fuel escape from the fuel system. Supervision. Inspections and checks. Spill procedures. Number and type of persons in premises. Location of stands relevant to emergency exits etc, etc. Believe me it's manageable and not rocket science stuff. If you are unsure then seek some advice from the regulator who in this case will probably be the LA and Fire Brigade.

Posted By Paul Ward I agree with Laurie, 30 million cars in the UK all with fuel tanks with fuel levels of full to empty. How many cars in your steet have gone up in flames. Ban smoking and any other types of naked flames. Paul

Posted By Peter MacDonald Come on, betting on horses is more or less Risk Assessment. Anyway, I got my money back on the fixed odds on Saturday. My thanks to Hartlepool. Peter