Gasoline mixups are one of the scarier consumer horror stories out there, since there isn’t much that a motorist can do to prevent or mitigate them. One happened in Tarrant County, Texas recently: people who pumped gasoline received diesel fuel, and people who pumped diesel received gasoline.

Using the wrong fuel can do serious and very expensive damage to a vehicle’s engine, which is pretty bad for the average motorist, and catastrophic for someone who drives for a living. For example, there’s the truck drivers whose vehicles run on diesel fuel, or businesses that depend on their trucks to, well, do business.

“I haven’t heard anything,” said one truck driver who filled up his diesel truck with gas at the station last Monday. “I want my truck back.” He’s been stuck driving a company vehicle, and would prefer his own truck. Same with the owner of a local septic tank pumping company that CBS Dallas-Fort Worth spoke to: he says that the truck damaged by gasoline is the company’s biggest, and having it out of commission is hurting them.

The owner of the gas station said that a driver for their fuel distributor, Shell, is to blame for the mixup, and that Shell’s insurance company will cover the damage to customers’ vehicles. The “Consumer Justice” team at CBS Dallas-Fort Worth has promised to keep an eye out for problems with the situation.

Consumer Justice: Gas Station Mix Up Could Cost Drivers Thousands [CBS DFW]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.