filling up at a petrol station?

It's not generally necessary to know. Fuel pump hoses will reach to the other side of most cars.

Edit: You missed out two words......MOST and CARS

This is completely nonsense as the following cars:-

Honda Civic 2003

Ford Fiesta 1992

Toyota Yaris 2004

Show the petrol pump lead to the right but the filler is on the left.

The Toyota however does have an arrow pointing to the left (below the pump symbol) which is shown in the handbook to be the indication of which side the filler is on.

Sorry, but it won't always work.

I just checked my '87 Ford Bronco II and '79 Chevrolet P30 van. Both have the symbol with the nozzle on the right, but the filler cap on both is on the left.

Yes, on my car (a Ford) a little arrow points to the side filler cap is on. Known this for years. It's also on my wife's car (a Toyota).

Good tip -will try that. many a time i have pulled up to the pump and find i'm on the wrong side and it's ALWAYS when there is a couple of cars waiting behind me...this just might save me next time i have a hire car from embarrassment!

I pretty much only use my local supermarket for fuel, and they put lonnnnng hoses in a while back, thankfully, so you don't have to queue on one side or other of the pump. :-))

If you were a novice driver, I'd say, "Fair enough". A lack of experience is a good reason for not knowing this obvious fact.

But it's taken you three decades to notice this?

Why?

Will give that a go also if you hear a niggly noise in the car that tells you where your wife is sitting

Actually, it's a myth. Not all cars follow that standard.

Clever and nice observation. I will check first in my cark .....