Petrol Pump Tests.
Page 10
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rrHE Public Control Committee of the L.C.C. .reports in favour of legislation to empower the Board of Trade to bring all petrol and oil. measuringpumps under regulation a-nd periodical inspection.
During the !last few years, owing to the great increase in mechanical road transport, petrol and oil measuring pumps have 'been installed at. a large number of premises in London and throughout the country. Various patterns of pumps have been approved by the Board of rracle under the Weights and Measures Act, 1904. hut there is no obligation placed' upon an inspector of weight's and measures to verify and stamp petrol measuring. pumps, and apparently the owner of one of these pumps who neglects or refuses to get it stamped does not commit an offence. The board is aware of, :his state of affairs and a Rill, knos,vn as the Measuring Instruments Bill, 1922, giving power to the board to deal With this matter, was introduced int() the House"sif Commons in
B26 July. The measure seeks to extend the board's existing power to make regulations with regard to measuring instruments used for trade with a view to insuring, inter alia, that all measuring pumps shall be brought under regulation and inspection. It. is, however, unlikely that any progress will be made with the measure during the present session.
Reporting on this, the Public Control Committee says that, as the Board of Trade has not so far issued any regulations or instructions on the subject, those weights and measures inspectors who decide to verify and stamp petrol measuring pumps of approved pattern have to take the respensibility Of the method of testing and the limits of error allowed.
With a view to ascertaining the degree of accuracy attained by measuring pumps .actually in use, several tests have recently been made by the council's inspectors. In all, 68 pumps were examined, and of these only 23 were found to be correct. or within the limits of error permitted under fhe Board of Trade regulations for coni
cal petrol measures of similar capacity. Of the remaining 45 it was found that 12 were in excess by various quantities; 2 were correct in some deliveries but in excess in others; 14 were deficient by. various quantities; 10 were deficient in some deliveries and in excess in others. while 7 were correct in some deliveries and deficient hi others. In deliveries, represented as one gallon, the largest amount of error in excess was 14 pints, the greatest deficiency being 1 pint.
With One exception, the 68 pumps were of two patterns both approved by the Board of Trade. In view of the discrepancies disclosed by the examination, communications were sent to the makers informing them of the results of the tests.
The state of affairs revealed by these tests is most unsatisfactory and indicates the urgent need for action being taken to safeguard the interests of the general public by bringing the measuring instruments in question under proper control. This would be far more satisfactory both to users and makers.