Drivers left mindblown to discover petrol stations have 'secret button' that actually makes fuel come out

You may think that you're an experienced driver that knows pretty much everything about the roads and taking care of your vehicle, but the truth is there's always something you don't know.

One content creator shared a fact about petrol pumps that seems to have left millions of social media users in awe, as a surprising amount of car owners hadn't heard of it before.

TikToker Amelia Gartner shared something that she recently learned about the pumps at the petrol station, which apparently aren't as straight forward as we all thought.

The fact is that whether you own a car or not, a lot of people aren't aware of the fact that pressing the pump doesn't make petrol come out.

It may be old news to some, but the thousands of people in the comments of the viral video say that a lot of people had no idea either.

Gartner was completely gobsmacked in her video, posted in 2022, as she explains: "I'm sorry, am I the only person in the world who did not know that when you put this petrol thing in your car and press down the button that doesn't make the petrol come out?

"It sends an alarm to the person inside the petrol station and they have to push a button to make the petrol flow out. Like, what?!"

Amelia captioned the post: "Why was this never taught in school? Mind blown…"

The clip has since gone viral, amassing a whopping 2.4 million views at the time of writing.

Thousands of people have taken to the comments section to share their shock, with one writing: "Omf I had no idea!!! Is that why sometimes the petrol doesn’t come."

Another said: "I did know this but... I don't think I've ever heard an alarm going off while inside paying???? looks like I'm hanging out in BP tomorrow."

"Oh… I push it over and over until it starts," added a third. Bet their local petrol station loves them.

Just as many people were already aware of the fact, including this person who quipped, "You’re one of the very few who didn’t know this lol."

Another (who was a little less brutal in their response) explained: "It actually does... that ‘alarm’ is so the person working can activate the pump so that it actually works."

If you're wondering why petrol stations follow this system, thankfully motoring journalist Maria McCarthy was on hand to explain.

In an article for Saga Magazine, she wrote: "Some motorists are confused when they unhook the hose but the pump doesn't reset.

"This is because they are authorised by the attendant in the shop and if they're busy there could be a slight delay.

"All the pumps have to be visible to them so they can check the person isn't under age, filling up canisters or likely to behave in an unsafe manner.

"The attendant is only meant to open up the pump once the hose is in the tank."

So the next time you're at a petrol pump wondering why nothing's happening, maybe refrain from hitting the button over and over again – unless you want to seriously annoy the cashier.