Rising petrol prices appear to be distracting the county’s police force at a crucial moment.

We can exclusively reveal 29 staff across east Kent have put the wrong kind of petrol into their police cars over the last five years.

The cost: £4,744.33, with an average repair bill of £163.67.

There is encouragement for our local bobbies though, the problem appears to be decreasing.

East Kent recorded the cheapest mishaps across the county during 2007/08 at £380.54, only two staff making the costly error of choosing the wrong pump.

Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show repair bills topped four figures in 2004/05 and 2005/06 at £1,718.21 and £1,343.96 respectively.

Kent Police have put those inflated figures down to the introduction of an environmental charge for disposing of contaminated fuel and launching new technology to prevent misfuelling.

However, since then, a further six incidents have still taken place.

East Kent officers came fourth in the county across the last five years, with South Kent, which covers Ashford, Shepway and Dover, proving the clumsiest.

Their 45 mistakes since 2003 have cost the force £8,278.80 in repairs.

Across the county, 274 mistakes have cost the force £48,831 since April, 2003, but the force maintain the breakdowns have not affected day to day business.

The AA say an estimated 150,000 drivers a year make the same mistake, that’s one car every three and a half minutes.