Driving with jerry cans of petrol in the trunk is allowed, provided you comply with the rules. For example, you can transport a maximum of 240 liters of spare fuel for your own use. “But we really don’t recommend this,” Jos van der Drift, car expert of the ANWB, told EditieNL.
“Think about what could happen if you were involved in a rear-end collision with a few hundred liters of petrol in the trunk. You really turn your car into a moving bomb.”
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Even if you’ve made it home, there’s still danger lurking. “You have to store that petrol. Maybe you do that in the shed, in the storage room of your flat or under the carport. Where there may also be other electrical appliances, such as an e-bike on the charger. You don’t want to know what what happens when a fire breaks out there.”
Leak hazard
Moreover, transferring petrol from a jerry can to the car tank often does not go smoothly, says the car expert. “That’s a lot of mess and hassle where the gasoline often ends up on the ground.”
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If you do, you also run the risk of being stopped at the border. “From abroad you can take a maximum of ten liters of spare fuel with you duty-free. So if you cross the border with all those jerry cans, you are in violation of tax. You could be fined for that.”
Type jerry can
In addition, you may not just pour the petrol in any type of packaging. “It has to be in jerry cans that are suitable for this. They may be a maximum of sixty liters each and must not leak. The fuel must be transported well anchored. Many jerry cans are not suitable for petrol. There is a good chance that they will already leak en route.”
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You can indeed go wrong in terms of type of jerry can, agrees Eugène Geurtsen, fire safety instructor at EGBHV. “Most people use the jerry cans that you put water in at the campsite. They do not meet the requirements for transporting flammable liquids,” he tells EditieNL.
Dangerous fumes
These can leak, releasing the vapors of the liquid. “With a flammable liquid, it is mainly those vapors that are dangerous and catch fire. Under ideal conditions you get an explosive mixture. If you drive unsuspectingly on the highway with a trunk full of fuel, it can lead to bizarre situations.”
The car does not have to come into contact with a real flame for this. “That can already be fueled by street electricity or a sweater that you put on or take off. Or a cigarette. People underestimate that danger.”
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The advice of the ANWB is therefore: just fill up with what you need and don’t drive all the way to Germany if you don’t live in the area. “See where you can find the cheapest petrol in your area and drive to that gas station,” says car expert Van der Drift. “But don’t go an hour there and drive an hour back to refuel cheaper.”
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